Handbook of Composites from Renewable Materials : Design and Manufacturing

This unique multidisciplinary 8-volume set focuses on the emerging issues concerning synthesis, characterization, design, manufacturing and various other aspects of composite materials from renewable materials and provides a shared platform for both researcher and industry.

The Handbook of Composites from Renewable Materials comprises a set of 8 individual volumes that brings an interdisciplinary perspective to accomplish a more detailed understanding of the interplay between the synthesis, structure, characterization, processing, applications and performance of these advanced materials. The Handbook comprises 169 chapters from world renowned experts covering a multitude of natural polymers/ reinforcement/ fillers and biodegradable materials.

Volume 2 is solely focused on the Design and Manufacturing of renewable materials. Some of the important topics include but not limited to: Design and manufacturing of high performance green composites; manufacturing of high performance biomass-based polyesters by rheological approach; components design of fibrous composite materials; design and manufacturing of bio-based sandwich structures; design and manufacture of biodegradable products from renewable resources; manufacturing and characterization of quicklime filled metal alloy composites for single row deep groove ball bearing; manufacturing of composites from chicken feathers and poly (vinyl chloride); production of porous carbons from resorcinol-formaldehyde gels: applications; composites using agricultural wastes; manufacturing of rice wastes-based natural fiber polymer composites from thermosetting vs. thermoplastic matrices; thermoplastic polymeric composites; natural fiber reinforced PLA composites; rigid closed-cell PUR foams containing polyols derived from renewable resources; preparation and application of the composite from alginate; recent developments in biocomposites of bombyx mori silk fibroin; design and manufacturing of natural fiber/ synthetic fiber reinforced polymer hybrid composites; natural fiber composite strengthening solution for structural beam component for enhanced flexural strength; high pressure resin transfer molding of epoxy resins from renewable sources; cork based structural composites; the use of wheat straw as an agricultural waste in composites for semi-structural applications and design/ manufacturing of sustainable composites.

Vijay Kumar Thakur is a Lecturer in the School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing Engineering, Cranfield University, UK. Previously he had been a Staff Scientist in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University, USA. He spent his postdoctoral study in Materials Science & Engineering at Iowa State University, USA, and gained his PhD in Polymer Chemistry (2009) at the National Institute of Technology, India. He has published more than 90 SCI journal research articles in the field of polymers/materials science and holds one US patent. He has also published about 25 books and 33 book chapters on the advanced state-of-the-art of polymers/materials science with numerous publishers, including Wiley-Scrivener.

Manju Kumar Thakur has been working as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the Division of Chemistry, Govt. Degree College Sarkaghat Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, India since 2010. She received her PhD in Polymer Chemistry from the Chemistry Department at Himachal Pradesh University. She has deep experience in the field of organic chemistry, biopolymers, composites/ nanocomposites, hydrogels, applications of hydrogels in the removal of toxic heavy metal ions, drug delivery etc. She has published more than 30 research papers in peer-reviewed journals, 25 book chapters and co-authored five books all in the field of polymeric materials.

Michael R. Kessler is a Professor and Director of the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Washington State University, USA. He is an expert in the mechanics, processing, and characterization of polymer matrix composites and nanocomposites. His honours include the Army Research Office Young Investigator Award, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award, the NSF CAREER Award, and the Elsevier Young Composites Researcher Award from the American Society for Composites. He has more than 150 journal articles and 5800 citations, holds 6 patents, published 5 books on the synthesis and characterization of polymer materials, and presented at least 200 talks at national and international meetings.