Lignocellulose fiber extraction from Ixora coccinea plants for possible reinforcement in polymer composites

This study investigates the possible utilization of natural fibers obtained from the Ixora coccinea. The obtained fibers were subjected to chemical, physical, and mechanical treatments to analyze and describe their properties. An assessment is conducted to systematically analyze the mechanical properties, morphology of the fibers, and the amount of extracted material. The employed characterization techniques comprise X-ray diffraction (XRD) for assessing the degree of crystallinity index (CI), tensile testing for evaluating mechanical properties, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) to analyze the chemical structure, Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) for measuring changes in mass alongside temperature, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for examining the surface morphology. An analysis of the fiber composition indicated that the cellulose content accounted for 63.87 %, the hemicellulose content accounted for 12.13 %, and the lignin content accounted for 16.25 %. The CI of Ixora coccinea was determined to be 33.707 %,. The mechanical characteristics of Ixora coccinea reveal its potential as a reinforcing material, as evidenced by its impressive tensile strength of 328.1 ± 27.13 MPa and strain rate of 6.153 ± 0.506 %. The findings suggest that the fibers obtained from Ixora coccinea exhibit a distinctive blend of strength, rendering them appropriate for many applications in several industries.