Fabrication of Reinforcement from Sisal Fiber and Its Application in Leather Goods

Abstract

Reinforcement materials are an essential component of leather goods. They provide support, structure, and protection to the leather and can be used to change its drape and handling. The nonbiodegradability of existing reinforcements in leather goods and the high cost of materials are major challenges. The objective of this study is to fabricate reinforcement materials from sisal fiber with a face-centered central composite design. The main factors involved in the experiment with their respective levels are polyvinyl alcohol in grams (30, 35, and 40), sisal fiber in grams (20, 22, and 24), and binder in milliliters (mL) (10, 15, and 20). The dependent variables studied are tensile strength, tear strength, and elongation at the break of reinforcement material. The results of the experiment revealed that as the amount of fiber increased by 14%, the tensile strength of reinforcement material increased by 5%, and as the fiber loading increased by 16%, elongation at break decreased by 30%. However, as the fiber loading increased to 15%, the tear strength of the material decreased by 35%. Increasing the amount of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) in the reinforcement material by 50% increased elongation at the break by 15% and reduced the tear strength by 3% and the tensile strength by 10%. Varying the amount of binder did not affect the tensile and tear strength of the reinforcement material; however, it had a positive effect on the elongation of the material. The reinforcement material produced from sisal fiber has a comparable quality parameter to commercially available synthetic-based materials, and it could be used in leather goods production.