A race towards a more sustainable society is going on worldwide and decreasing dependence on fossil resources in energy and transport sectors is main goals. One path to decreased oil usage is development of lightweight materials from renewable resources like bio-based composites. However these new bio-based materials have not only to compete in mechanical performance, they also have to restrain environmental loads like moisture and temperature over time. In this study two bio-based composites have been compared to an oil-based composite in terms of long-term properties and water absorption behaviour. The long-term behaviour is determined by dynamic mechanical thermal analysis, DMTA, and time temperature superposition, TTSP. The water uptake is determined by submersion of specimens into water and tracking their weight change over time. The moisture influence is characterised in form of water uptake and change in the master curves created by TTSP procedure. The results show that there is a significant difference in long-term performance between the bio-based and oil-based composites. It is realized that the bio-based composites can be a good alternative for some applications especially when taking their eco-friendly nature into account.

This paper describes an approach to manufacture hierarchical composites from environmentally friendly materials by grafting cellulose whiskers onto regenerated cellulose fibers (Cordenka 700). Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis were performed to verify the degree of modification. The mechanical properties of the unmodified and modified fibers were analyzed using fiber bundle tensile static and loading-unloading tests. To show the effect of cellulose whiskers grafting on the Cordenka fibers, epoxy based composites were manufactured and tensile tests done on transverse uni-directional specimens. The mechanical properties were significantly increased by fiber modification and addition of the nano-phase into composite reinforced with micro-sized fibers.

This paper describes an approach to manufacture hierarchical composites from environmentally friendly materials by grafting cellulose whiskers onto regenerated cellulose fibers (Cordenka 700). Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis were performed to verify the degree of modification. The mechanical properties of the unmodified and modified fibers were analyzed using fiber bundle tensile static and loading-unloading tests. To show the effect of cellulose whiskers grafting on the Cordenka fibers, epoxy based composites were manufactured and tensile tests done on transverse uni-directional specimens. The mechanical properties were significantly increased by fiber modification and addition of the nano-phase into composite reinforced with micro-sized fibers.

By addressing two critical barriers that are known to prevent U.S. undergraduate engineering students from considering study abroad, namely, fitting the experience into highly structured engineering degree curricula and defraying the cost, recruitment of students can be quite satisfactory. Based on the unequal exchange of E.U. students participating in the program, it appears that the time to Bachelor's degree completion can be an important aspect for E.U. participation. With regard to the cost, the differential cost of participation compared to the students staying at their home university can be quite low (a few thousand dollars per year), making this type of program potentially affordable to sustain by providing small scholarships r stipends to the students. Finally, by partnering with foreign universities, OSU and UdS have been able to leverage their resources and provide the opportunity for students to pursue a Bachelor'sdegree in materials science or mechanical engineering, respectively.

A green thermoplastic polymer based on wheat flour was modified by the addition of a natural crosslinker genipin. Films of the polymer modified with different composition of genipin were prepared by extrusion. Free surface energy using contact angle method, moisture absorption test and hardness test were used to characterize the products. From moisture absorption and contact angle measurements, it was seen that for genipin amounts higher than 0.2% w/w, a hydrophobic character is achieved. Results obtained indicate enhancement in hydrophobic properties of the films.

Composite compounds based on hemp and flax fibers in triethyl citrate plasticized starch acetate were prepared by melt processing. For better properties and processability, compounds with plasticizer contents in the range 20-35 wt% were screened. Composites were prepared with fiber contents up to 50 wt%. The composite mechanical properties were measured from injection molded test specimens. A Young's modulus of 8.3 GPa and stress at maximum load of 51 MPa were obtained with 40 wt% flax fiber in a plasticized starch acetate with 20 wt% triethyl citrate. Decreasing the plasticizer and increasing the fiber content, the tensile properties were consistently improved. An almost linear relation between fiber content and the tensile properties was found. The increase of the fiber content first improved the impact strength, but at higher fiber contents resulted in a reduction of impact strength. The quality of the produced materials was found to be good; the variation in properties between duplicated compounds was acceptable low, the variation in density and fiber content along a single tensile specimen was low, and finally, the porosity content was low even at high fiber content. The latter result was verified with scanning electron microscope images of fracture surfaces of the composites.