Polymer composites have been used in a wide range of applications such as aerospace, automobile, marine, architecture, sports and energy due to their light weight, high durability and excellent mechanical properties. However, end-of-life composite waste represents a critical challenge. Various approaches have been introduced to recycle fibre-reinforced composites. Despite this, the exiting approaches require complex expensive facilities commonly associated with high energy usage and emissions of gases and chemicals resulting in significant harmful environmental impacts.

Significant interest has recently focussed on the development of sustainable composites to make them more environmentally friendly at the end of their life. Using renewable materials such as waste streams and agricultural by-products have been considered as ideal composite constituents.

Natural fibres are cheap sustainable materials with high CO2 adsorption capability and therefore are the optimum choice for the manufacturing of sustainable composites. Their main disadvantage however is their low mechanical properties compared to glass and carbon fibres. They also have a high tendency for moisture adsorption and poor fire retardancy. These challenges have limited the wide use of natural fibres in the industry. Interestingly, cellulose nanofibers were estimated to have a Young’s modulus of ca. 140 GPa and tensile strength of 2–3 GPa. Therefore, there is a huge potential to significantly improve the performance of natural fibres via the use of a novel combination of surface treatments. Natural fibres will be investigated as a prime reinforcement material for natural biopolymers such as chitosan and seaweed.

Chitosan chemically derived from chitin which is the second most abundant materials after cellulose. Chitin is commonly extracted from shellfish wastes and seaweed has become globally abundant via farming. Seaweed has a high capability of absorbing carbon dioxide. The challenge is that neither pure chitosan nor seaweed biopolymers can be simply melt processed into composites. Consequently, a new scalable technique will be developed for the manufacturing of fibre-reinforced chitosan/seaweed composites.

The aim of this experimental PhD project is to develop a new class of fully sustainable eco-friendly fibre-reinforced composites, using renewable fibres and biopolymers, with unique properties to replace the conventional counterparts for various applications.

The student will be part of the Advanced Composites Group and join a vibrant community of PhD students, post-doctoral associates and academics working in various aspects of composite material characterisation, design, processing and testing. In addition to undertaking cutting edge research, students are also registered for the Postgraduate Certificate in Researcher Development (PGCert), which is a supplementary qualification that develops a student’s skills, networks and career prospects.