Abstract:
Recently, natural fiber derived from lignocellulosic materialsis considered to have better properties than the petroleum-based synthetic fiber. Several natural fibers that are potential to be developed are kapok and balsa seed pod fibers. Both of kapok and balsa fibers’characteristics must be known to determine its suitability for many applications. The purpose of this study is to analyze some important basic properties of kapok and balsa fibers including its dimension, morphology, chemical compound and wettability. The results of study showed that the average fiber length of kapok and balsa were 1.63 cm and 1.30 cm, respectively. Kapok and balsa fibers had thin cell wall and large lumen filled with air. The essential chemical components of kapok fiber observed were α-cellulose, lignin and wax content by 38.09%, 14.09%, and 2.34%, respectively. While, balsa fiber observed contains chemical components of 44.62% α-cellulose, 16.60% lignin and 2.29% wax content, respectively. There were similarities between kapok and balsa fibers’ characteristics due to the XRD, FTIR and DSC data obtained. The contact angle between aquadest and kapok as well as balsa fibers was more than 90°, so that both fibers had hydrophobic and low wettability properties due to the presence of wax content on the fiber surface.
