Plastic and Natural Fiber Materials

Dear Colleagues,

Thermoplastics, natural fibers and natural fiber thermoplastic composites are among the sustainable materials which have recently received great interest in both research and industry development for applications in many sectors, including automotive, sports and aerospace. The materials provide a wide range of advantages such as high specific mechanical properties, recyclability, renewability (in the case of natural fibres), short processing cycle and ability of post-forming. However, there remain challenges in both manufacturing and product performance when using the materials, which include high viscosity of the thermoplastic during composite processing, poor fiber–matrix compatibility and adhesion, low thermal stability and mechanical properties.

This Special Issue aims to present the latest scientific and technical advances in materials development, processing, characterizations and applications development of thermoplastics and natural-fiber-reinforced thermoplastics. Sustainability aspects related to the materials and their applications are highly welcome.

Dr. Le Quan Ngoc Tran
Dr. Carlos A. Fuentes
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.