Recent Advances In The Processing And Treatment of Plant Fibers As Reinforcement For Biocomposites

Plant fiber–reinforced biocomposites have emerged as sustainable alternatives to synthetic fiber reinforced composites due to their biodegradability, nontoxic nature, less environmental impact, and comparable technical performances. This chapter presents an overview of recent advances in the field of processing and treatment of plant fibers to be used as reinforcement in biocomposites. This chapter explores various extraction methods from various plant sources and the characteristics of the plant fibers obtained from these extraction methods. This chapter also discusses the role of both physical and chemical surface modification of plant fibers on the interfacial adhesion between fibers and polymer matrices and their impact on the properties of the composites. © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.