Morphology and Tensile Properties of Biocomposite based Polyvinyl Alcohol and Cassava Starch Reinforced by Lemon Peel Fiber

This study investigated the tensile properties, fracture morphology, and biodegradability of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) and cassava starch biocomposites reinforced with lemon peel fibers.The biocomposites were prepared using the solution casting method with variations of lemon peel fiber fillers of 1, 2, 3, and 4%.Adding lemon peel fibers significantly increased the tensile strength as this addition increased the fiber content.Notably, the highest tensile strength observed was 14.82 MPa for the PVA/cassava starch biocomposite containing 3% lemon peel fibers.This result surpassed the tensile strength of the pure PVA and the PVA/cassava starch composites.This indicates that the lemon peel fibers effectively reinforce the matrix, resulting in stronger interfacial bonds and a more compact composite structure.In contrast, the elongation at break values decreased with higher concentrations of starch and fibers, indicating that adding fibers made the material stiffer and less flexible.In addition, this study assessed the biodegradation rate of the biocomposites, and found that the biocomposite with the highest lemon peel fiber content (4%) exhibited the most rapid biodegradation, with a degradation rate of 80.47% after 15 days of burial.This suggests that the presence of lemon peel fibers improves the mechanical properties of the biocomposites and increases their environmental friendliness.These findings suggest that PVA/cassava starch biocomposites reinforced with lemon peel fiber show significant potential as a sustainable alternative to conventional synthetic plastics, offering a balance of strength, flexibility, and environmental degradability.