Effect of water retting on the physical and mechanical properties of lignocellulosic fiber from Mariscus ligularis plant

The effect of water retting on the physical, morphological, thermal, mechanical, and chemical characteristics of retted Mariscus ligularis fibers (RMLF) compared to non-retted MLF has been studied. Removing pectin and non-cellulosic substances decreased the diameter from 243.6 μm to 183.01 μm, with a very low density of 245.30 kg/cm³. Atomic force microscopy analysis reveals a clean and relatively smooth surface topography. The cellulose content increased from 58.32 % to 75.3 %, signifying a 29 % increase. Ash and moisture contents reduced from 11.47 % to 1.86 % and 14.46 % to 7.75 %, respectively. The lignin, wax, and pectin levels reduced slightly, but the crystallinity index (CI) increased by 34.43 % to 97.1 %. The thermal stability of RMLF increased from 258 °C to 290.89 °C. RMLF's Young's modulus, tensile strength, and microfibril angle (MFA) were measured to be 3.9-5.21 ± 0.0768 GPa, 96-168 ± 3.594 MPa, and 12.55-20.91°, respectively. The Weibull distribution confirms strain, tensile strength, and Young's modulus of RMLF. Energy dispersive spectroscopy reveals carbon and oxygen as major peaks, enhancing RMLF's properties and making it a superior composite reinforcement material. These findings demonstrate that the fiber extraction method directly affects the quality attributes of ML fibers.