Interest in fiber reinforced composite materials is on a gradual
increase due to the fact that the addition of fibers to polymer resins
increases the mechanical strength of the resulting materials. Manmade
fibers such as carbon and glass whose feedstock is fossil fuels
are faced with global concerns with regard to greenhouse gas
emissions which are responsible for climate change [1e3]. According
to the report on Global Natural Fiber Composites Market
2014e2019: Trends, Forecast and Opportunity Analysis [4], it was
shown that by 2016, the natural fiber composites market is expected
to be worth US 531.2 million with an expected annual
growth rate of 11% for the next five years. Currently, natural fibers
account to over 14% share of reinforcement materials; however, the
share is projected to rise to 28% by 2020 amounting to about
830,000tonnes of natural fibers