Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications

March 7, 2014 11:32 9.75in x 6.
5in Handbook of Green Materials (4 volumes) b1685-v4-ch16
Chapter 16
Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications

by NANYANG TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY on 08/20/15. For personal use only.
Karim Behlouli
EcoTechnilin SAS, Yvetot Cedex, France
Handbook of Green Materials Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Natural fiber composites are generally well known for their environmental benefit. How-
ever, the reasons why natural fibers are used in industrial applications are due to the
economic and technical benefits in addition to their green image. This chapter deals with
compression-molded natural fiber thermoplastics for different automotive applications.
The production line for non-woven products as well as examples of applications produced
using natural fiber composites are described in detail.
16.1. Introduction
This chapter is about natural fibers (NFs) composites and their industrial manufac-
ture for automotive parts and it also explains how NFs can be used in many different
automotive applications. The automotive industry is one of the main drivers for the
use of NF composites in Europe and the majority of the producers of NF composite
preforms work for this industry. Car manufacturers and their direct suppliers have
created a market for NF composites and these suppliers have then found other areas
of application for these materials. Some car manufacturers are well known for their
ability to innovate and integrate NF composites, promoting them as “green” and
recyclable products. We have seen pictures1 of a Mercedes with many NF compos-
ites parts included but few people know that Ford, Toyota, Opel, BMW, PSA, and
Kia are also very active in this area of development.
16.2. Production of thermoplastic NF composites

16.2.1 Production methods
One of the main technologies used to make thermoplastic NF composites is thermo-
compression molding of NFs and polypropylene (PP) fibers, typically mixed 50/50.
The product is a non-woven fiber mat, and it is used as a preform in the compres-
sion molding process for different applications. Our company, EcoTechnilin SAS,
produces a number of NF composite panels using this technology.
NF composite producers will try to use local fiber resources to reduce trans-
portation costs and therefore it is common that hemp and flax are used in Europe
whilst kenaf and sisal are used in Asia as well as in North and South America.
245
March 7, 2014 11:32 9.75in x 6.5in Handbook of Green Materials (4 volumes) b1685-v4-ch16
246 K. Behlouli
Raw material quality is key to obtaining consistent NF composites. Some

research teams have been working to improve the performance of NFs and reduce
variability, as discussed in Chapter 2. This is also an important part of research
projects such as SINFONI, a French national project, which aims to develop the
value chain to improve the know-how at all stages of NF composite production.2
Non-woven technology is used widely in the manufacture of carpets, wipes,
synthetic leather, and geotextiles. The non-woven technology usually has production
lines with very large capacity and uses many different types of fibers; it is a very
flexible process.
A typical non-woven fiber mat production line for NF composites consists of
several machines as illustrated in Fig. 16.1. The first step is fiber mixing (NFs
and polymer fibers) where bales are opened up and mixed. The second step is mat
forming where fibers are oriented, separated, and formed into a thick mat, which
is then partially consolidated into the non-woven mat. The needle-punch process
transfers fibers from one side of the mat to the other in the third step. The fourth
step is the cutting and packaging process of the NF–PP non-woven, which is now
ready for thermoforming or compression molding.
16.2.2 Compression molding

The part manufacturers use the NF–PP preforms directly in their compression
molding process and the final part is obtained in less than a minute. The polymer
(PP) is melted by heating the mat to 190◦C in an oven, or through contact heating.
After the softening of the polymer, the material is transferred to a compression
molding press to give it the shape of the final part, as shown in Fig. 16.2. A surface
layer is usually added in this phase of the process to get a surface finish for the
part. After the compression molding, the part is trimmed to its final shape.
Fig. 16.1. A schematic of a manufacturing line for needle-punched non-woven mats of natural
and polymer fibers (EcoTechnilin SAS).
Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications 247
Fig. 16.2. Schematic of the compression molding of a NF composite door panel.

Fig. 16.3. Flexural modulus as a function of density of a 1600 g/m2 NF–PP non-woven mat.
As discussed earlier, the automotive industry is the main industry that uses
NF–PP materials. The first parts were produced in the 1990s. In the next sections,
we discuss why these materials are good alternatives to other materials.
Depending on the application, the part can be compressed to different degrees
by decreasing or increasing the gap between the two molding tools. For a rigid appli-
cation, a higher pressure can be used (smaller gap) and for an acoustic application,
a lower pressure is used (larger gap). The pressure affects the density and the stiff-
ness of the material as seen in Fig. 16.3. As an example, when using a 1600 g/m2
NF–PP non-woven mat, a door panel with a density of 0.9 kg/dm3 can be produced
when the gap between the molding tools is 1.8 mm. However, a wheel arch cover
with a density of 0.5 kg/dm3 can be produced using the same material when the
gap distance is increased to 3.2 mm.
16.3. Examples of NF composites

16.3.1 Door panel
The first NF composite parts produced by compression molding by EcoTechnilin
SAS in Europe were door panels, shown in Fig. 16.4. Typically, injection molding
is used as a manufacturing method for automotive interior parts. However, a few
248 K. Behlouli
Fig. 16.4. NF composite door panel produced by EcoTechnilin SAS.
decades ago, car manufacturers decided to make cars more personalized and intro-
duced a larger number of models with different interior colors and finish. To bring
about this change, companies needed to increase the number of different parts but
produce fewer parts of each. Injection molding is inexpensive as long as hundreds
of thousands of similar parts are produced because it is a fast process but it is not
flexible, and the molding tools are very expensive. However, compression molding
tools are five times cheaper than injection molding tools, they are also more flexi-
ble, and compression molding process is fast enough to produce parts competitively.
Hence, for these door panels, compression molding is a better manufacturing pro-
cess. Although it is clear that this technology cannot replace all injection molding as
it is not suitable for complicated shapes, some suppliers are also developing NF–PP
compounds for injection molding.
By compression molding NF–PP, the weight of the door panels can be reduced
by 25–30%. The role of NF is to reinforce the PP and to make the door panel safer
because when there is a lateral impact, the NF composite will break without any
sharp edges.
16.3.2 Instrument panel

To reduce the weight of cars, suppliers are looking to replace heavy and complicated
automotive parts made of petroleum-based materials by using biobased materials
and a case in point is instrument panels. The first European supplier that pro-
duced a NF composite for instrument panels was a French company, Faurecia. The
panel was produced for a SMART Fortwo vehicle made of NF–PP (50 wt% flax
and 50 wt% PP). The manufacturing process is similar to that for a door panel but
more complicated because plastic inserts and covers need to be integrated and are
added in the mold before the compression molding. One of the challenges in the
manufacturing is that the instrument panel is considered as part that is critical for
occupant’s safety.
16.4. Replacement of glass fiber composites

In order to increase the number of recyclable parts, some car manufacturers are
interested to replace glass fibers (GFs) used in parcel shelves, with NFs. Parcel
shelves are lightweight panels that have to be able to support considerable loads
over a large span (up to 1 m). Some of our internal studies have shown that the stiff-
ness of NF–PP composites is similar compared to GF–PP composites in standard
conditions but problems appear at higher temperatures. The parcel shelf is tested
at 95◦ C by the car manufacturers and it has been seen that the stiffness of NF–PP
panels is lower than GF–PP ones at this high temperature. The possibility of using
NF–PP for parcel shelves is also linked to consumer’s habits. If parcel shelves are
used as a board, which is just separating the trunk from the interior, NF composites
are a suitable choice. In some cases where the parcel shelves are used as a shelf and
high load can be applied, then GF composites are a better option. An example of
the use of natural fibers in this application is by Toyota who decided a few years ago
to use NF–PP non-woven mats to produce parcel shelves for some of their models
(Crown, Mark X, and Camry) and modified the design to allow the use of NFs.
When using NFs in parcel shelves, the shelf should not to be too long and with
a minimal cantilevered area behind the lateral supports. However, all cars are not
adapted for this.
16.5. Replacement of cotton and polyester

Automotive suppliers have used parcel shelves or headliners made from a polyester
non-woven mats. These mats are well known to have good recyclability but have
relatively low stiffness and a higher weight is needed to reach the required stiffness.
Hence, suppliers have replaced the polyester non-woven with NF–PP composites
and the same thermo-compression lines can be used as for the polyester materials.
This means there is no need to make any extra investment to use NFs. Figure 16.5
shows a headliner made of NF–PP non-woven mat.
Fig. 16.5. An example of a headliner made by thermo-compression of a non-woven of flax and

PP fibers.
250 K. Behlouli
Fig. 16.6. Wheel arches for Opel Insigna produced of flax or hemp and PP.
Recycled cotton is used as sound insulation behind the polyester non-woven

mat. Opel made the decision to use NF composites in the trunk area to combine
the stiffness and acoustic insulation into just one part, see Fig. 16.6, Opel Insigna
trunk interior. One of the important criteria for the car industry is perceived quality.
Hence, the properties might meet the requirements but it is important how the
customers feel about the product. In some car trunks, the wheel arches have a very
soft feel, these parts are made with polyester and recycled cotton mats.
With this technology, a part that meets the acoustic requirements whilst satis-
fying the quality perception of the customer is reached.
16.6. Alternative to plywood boards

Spare wheel covers are used to be made of plywood boards but nowadays weight
saving has become very important and therefore it would be good if these covers
can be replaced with lighter materials
A spare wheel cover is usually supported by spare wheel so it does not require
high stiffness, but in the case that the customer uses the trunk without the spare
wheel present, it is important that this part does not break. The deformation proper-
ties of NF–PP composites are very good and an advantage in this product. A spare
wheel cover produced of NF is used in PSA, Toyota, and KIA, and the cover of KIA
is shown in Fig. 16.7.
16.7. Recyclability
Recyclability is important and has to be mentioned when talking about NF com-
posites. Technically, it is possible to recycle parts and the material properties are
interesting. With specialized equipment, it is possible to regrind parts and turn
them into pellets that can be used in injection molding processes, Example of these
pellets are those produced by Fibrigran Rnew (Fig. 16.8).

Fig. 16.7. KIA spare wheel cover made of a compression-molded flax fiber PP non-woven mat.
Fig. 16.8. Recycled pellets (Fibrigran Rnew) and injection-molded samples made of this product.
However, recycling these products is not common because of logistics issues.

The volume of used parts is very low because the technology is quite new and the
industries and society are not ready to create an economical flow of NF composite
from the dismantling industry to the producers yet. French car manufacturers are
working on this issue, but firstly it has to be seen if the volumes are enough to
justify further development in this direction. The NF composite industry knows
how to recycle parts and investment has been made in this direction over the last
decade. A study made by Bourmaud and Baley, in Ref. 3, showed that recycling a
part up to five times by re-injecting a compound does not reduce the stiffness of
the part (Fig. 16.9). The technology has been tested for many different applications
and the results have been promising. Parts for the automotive industry as well as
for the construction industry are possible using this technology. The compound is
also cheaper than virgin-reinforced PP and the characteristics of this material are
shown in Table 16.1.
252 K. Behlouli
Fig. 16.9. Evolution of experimental and estimated tensile modulus of PP–hemp composite with
number of cycles. (The figure is adapted from Ref. 3 with a permission from the author.)
Table 16.1. Properties of Fibrigran Rnew.
Property Unit ISO Standard FIBRIGRAN Rnew
Hardness, SHORE D, 15 s — 868 73

Charpy impact resistance kJ/m2 179 14
Flexural properties
Maximum stress MPa 178 63
Flexural modulus MPa 4350
Tensile properties
Tensile stress MPa 37
Strain at break % 527 3
Tensile modulus MPa 3350
Melt flow rate
MFR (5 kg at 190◦ C) g/10 min 1133 <1
MFR (10 kg at 190◦ C) g/10 min 4
HDT A ◦C 75 65
16.8. Benefits of using NFs

Generally speaking, industries dealing with NF composites are looking for weight
saving. The stiffness of NFs is a great advantage and allows the production of a
much lighter composite with the same stiffness compared to GFs.
The technology that has been discussed above permits the same preform mats
to be used to produce parts with different densities. With a low-density product, the
acoustics of the vehicle can be improved and by combining acoustic material with
finishing trim, parts with additional acoustic functionality without added material
can be produced. This is the case for wheel arches and headliners.
By reducing the weight of the parts, we can reduce the fuel consumption of the
cars and the CO2 emission. Each 100 kg of mass saved in a car reduces the CO2
emissions by 10 g/km.4 The NF composite parts are also recyclable into new parts.
Car suppliers can reduce the price of a part by using NF–PP composites. Some
car manufacturers use this technology for this reason. Car part suppliers are under
pressure to meet the target price set for each part and car manufacturers are unwill-
ing to pay more. In fact, the automotive industry is driven by cost reduction and
innovation and is constantly aiming for higher efficiency. The costs of the molds
needed to make a part from NF–PP non-woven are reasonable and this is a big
advantage when producing 100,000 parts/year. There is a risk that the oil price will
increase considerably in the next few decades, hence a reduction of the quantity of
PP that is used to make each part allows us to reduce our exposure to the volatility
of the part price. The corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) is the average fuel
economy of a manufacturer’s annual fleet of vehicle production and targets are set
on this measure. The prospective fines for missing these CAFE target are forcing
car manufacturer to reduce CO2 emissions since otherwise they will pay a very high
price per car. By reducing the weight of the parts, car manufacturers reduce CO2
emissions of their cars and reduce their costs per car.
16.9. Conclusions
The success of using NFs in the automotive industry lies in their technical and
economical advantages. To improve the market share of NF products, the producers
have to focus on the needs of the market. The promotion of NF composites as green
technology is only a small consideration. Real performance at the market price will
be the recipe for success of the NF composite business.
References
1. M. Carus, Eco-friendly cars need sustainable materials, In Poster in 7th International
Conference of European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA), 26–27 May, Wesseling,
Germany (2010).
2. P. Bono and S.N. Didane, The French suppy chain for technical flax and hemp fibres
gets organized, JEC Compos. Mag. 80 (2013) 26–27.
3. A. Bourmaud, A. Le Duigou and C. Baley, Recycling of vegetal fibers reinforced poly-
mers, In Proceedings of 7th MoDeSt conference, 2–6 September, Prague, Czech Republic
(2012). Available at: www.modest2012.cz.
4. Plastics Europe, Automotive: the world moves with plastics. Belgium: PlasticEurope
(2013). Available at: www.plasticseurope.org.

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March 7, 2014 11:32 9.75in x 6.

5in Handbook of Green Materials (4 volumes) b1685-v4-ch16

Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications

16.2. Production of thermoplastic NF composites

Raw material quality is key to obtaining consistent NF composites. Some

16.2.2 Compression molding

Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications 247

Fig. 16.2. Schematic of the compression molding of a NF composite door panel.

16.3. Examples of NF composites

Fig. 16.4. NF composite door panel produced by EcoTechnilin SAS.

16.3.2 Instrument panel

Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications 249

16.4. Replacement of glass fiber composites

16.5. Replacement of cotton and polyester

Fig. 16.5. An example of a headliner made by thermo-compression of a non-woven of ﬂax and

Recycled cotton is used as sound insulation behind the polyester non-woven

16.6. Alternative to plywood boards

Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications 251

However, recycling these products is not common because of logistics issues.

Table 16.1. Properties of Fibrigran Rnew.

Property Unit ISO Standard FIBRIGRAN Rnew

Hardness, SHORE D, 15 s — 868 73

16.8. Benefits of using NFs

Natural Fiber Composites in Automotive Applications 253

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