This chapter focuses on mechanical performance of biofibers such as flax, hemp, and sisal and their effect on mechanical performance when they are reinforced in thermoset and thermoplastic polymers. The aim of this chapter is to present an overview of the mechanical characterization of the biofibers and their corresponding composites. The mechanical characterization includes tensile, flexural, impact, compressive, shear, toughness, hardness, brittleness, ductility, creep, fatigue, and dynamic mechanical analyses. Detailed studies of each test have been widely reported and an overview is important to relate the studies. Studies pertaining to the topics are cited. The most common materials used in biocomposites are biofibers (also called natural fibers) and petroleum-based polymers such polypropylene. The use of renewable materials in biocomposites has increased in the past couple of decades owing to extensive research on cellulosic fibers and biopolymers based on starch or vegetable oil. Today, research is focused on reinforcing natural fibers in petroleum-based polymers. However, the emphasis is shifting toward the amount of renewable materials in biocomposites, which has led to the use of biopolymers instead of petroleum-based polymers in composites. The mechanical properties of some renewable resource-based composites are comparable to commercially available nonrenewable composites.

Several plant biofibers have been reinforced in thermoplastics or thermosets to manufacture biocomposites because of their specific properties. The Young's modulus of commonly used biofibers such as hemp and flax could be over 50 GPa and therefore they could be good alternatives to glass fibers in several applications. The good mechanical properties of these biofibers influence the composites' mechanical performance when reinforced in polymers. It is important to understand the mechanical performance of these biofibers and biocomposites in a working environment. A detailed discussion about the mechanical performance of commonly used biofibers and composites is provided in this chapter.