Physico-chemical and microstructural characterization of “Rhectophyllum camerunense” plant fiber

A vegetal fiber extracted from the Rhectophyllum camerunense plant is presented in this paper. The method of extraction is described and the resulting fibers were uniform with almost circular cross-sections. The density of the new fiber was found to be very low and chemical analysis has revealed that cellulose content is 68.2%. Microscopy observation was used for the measurement of the thicknesses of layers and the microfibril angle of the S2 sub-layer. Tensile tests were performed to measure the mechanical properties of the fiber. The Young’s modulus is nearly the same as for sisal fiber and elongation at break is very high, up to 50%.