Coconut Husk, a Lignocellulosic Biomass, as a Promising Engineering Material for Non-wood Paper Production

Plant fiber classified as environmentally friendly material is a promising renewable engineering material rich in lignocellulose that can be employed in the pulp and paper industry as a substitution to wood which has been entailing negative environmental impacts due to acute deforestation. This paper assesses the feasibility of manufacturing biodegradable, writable and eco-friendly papers from waste coconut husk which is a low-cost and locally available biomass. The biomass was used along with wastepaper in different ratios. Papers of 60 gm−2 were produced with and without binder. Starch was added as binder to strengthen the paper and increase its resistance to bursting and abrasion. The properties of the paper were assessed through physical and mechanical tests. The mean thickness of the unreinforced and starch reinforced papers were 0.267 ± 0.012 mm and 0.282 ± 0.016 mm respectively. The reinforced 100% coconut husk paper specimens demonstrated greatest tensile and burst index of 19.25 Nmg−1 and 2.266 kPam2g−1 respectively requiring the highest number of 125 turns to get abraded. Unreinforced 60% coconut fibers showed lowest absorbency rate implying that it is 35 times more absorbent than 60 g/m2 normal paper. The paper specimens having highest mean recovery angle suitable for writing materials were the reinforced 60% Cocos Nucifera and 40% wastepaper (77.6°).