Flax fiber-reinforced materials for building and structural applications

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Natural fibers are an abundant, low-cost, and generally underutilized resource. Often, they are produced as waste by-products of industrial or agricultural processes. In Canada, for example, flax is grown primarily for its oilseed, and the straw is discarded or burned as a waste material. However, the fiber within the straw is one of the most durable and strong natural fibers, making it an ideal candidate for an effective fiber reinforcement in composite materials. Canada is the largest producer and exporter of flax in the world with close to 600 000 tons of flax produced in 2013/2014, making oilseed flax a readily available source of fibers. Protec-Style is presently producing flax fibers (FF) from the processing of oilseed or fiber flax plant. They are hydrophilic and their surface can be easily modified to improve compatibility and dispersion within matrices, making them efficient in reinforcing brittle polymer and in stabilizing cracks when insert in a concrete matrix. Currently, there is a critical need for advanced building materials for the domestic infrastructure, not only for new high-performance construction, but also to repair and enhance the performance of existing structures. These materials are required to be increasingly more energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, sustainable, affordable, and resilient. Fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) are more and more used in construction. FRP are inexpensive, lightweight, and resistant alternatives to typical construction materials (i.e. steel, concrete, wood) for building (i.e. siding, panel, and roofing) and structural applications (i.e. external reinforcement, sheets). On the other hand, concrete is often and traditionally reinforced with fibers made of steel or polymer to increase tensile strength and improve ductility. This research and development project will enable to improve profitability and the environmental performances of Protec-Style, to elaborate some innovating materials ready to be used by FRP manufacturer and concrete supplier (Béton provincial). In addition, the project will enable to develop a new type of filaments, that is renewable and use highly available resources in Canada for its manufacture.