Cellulosic fibres-based epoxy composites: From bioresources to a circular economy

Global transition towards a bio-based economy to reduce the carbon footprints as an alternative to petroleum-based has led to the production of new cellulosic fibre-based eco-sustainable products in the construction and building industry. The present review gives an insight into how bio-based (fibre) is used as a reinforcement in polymer matrix composites. Specifics of the fibres in varied forms and their effect on the tensile characteristics of the resulting epoxy composites are reviewed. Studies reported to date have mostly focussed on improving the strength in the context of mechanical behaviour of the composites for varied structural applications. However, the scientific knowledge relating to modulus, its reinforcing capabilities are very limited in the literature. Detailed studies on the effect of dense regions with high moduli, less dense with insignificant moduli, point-to-point variation in the matrix are needed. This review proffers detailed explanations of the chemical treatments, hybridization, processing methods used from the last 22 years (2000–2022) in processing natural fibre composites (NFC) for value-added products. Future perspectives and functionalization of intelligence in biocomposites are also discussed.