During the last few decades, the environmental problems primarily caused by the excessive use of conventional petrochemical based materials such as plastics have become one of the major public concerns all around the globe. Many countries are making enormous efforts to overcome these problems by making and adopting vari­ous policies as well as management programs. With the growing concerns towards the environment, industries and researchers are also looking forward to the use of environmentally friendly materials for product development in a number of appli­cations. Among various environmentally friendly materials, renewable resources — derived polymers (e. g., bio-based polymers) and composites (e. g., natural fibers reinforced composites) are attracting a great deal of attention because of the inherent advantages of these polymers such as conservation of limited petroleum resources, biodegradability, low toxicity, easy availability, economy and the control of carbon dioxide emissions that lead to global warming.

From the view of sustainable development, the new materials associated with biorenewable sources are enormously being explored. Indeed the concerns over new materials from renewable resources, especially in the automotive and biomedical industries, have recently increased because of the economic consequences of de­pleting petroleum resources, the demands from industrialists and customers for high performance low-cost materials and environmental regulations. From biorenewable natural resources, ecofriendly materials can be obtained as native biopolymers, raw materials for monomers and bio-engineered biopolymers to name a few. Biopoly­mer based materials such as cellulose, starch, chitosan/chitin, poly (lactic acid), and poly (hydroxyalkanoate), etc. are among the most abundantly available biopolymers on the planet Earth. They are replacing the materials for many industrial applica­tions where synthetic polymers have been materials of choice, traditionally. One of the important aspects of biobased materials is that they can be designed and tailored to meet different desires. As the native biopolymers are not conventionally process — able, research efforts have been focused on the processing and meeting the require­ments of particular applications. The biobased materials are most frequently being used in the form of biocomposites. These biocomposites materials contain at least one component form the biorenewable resources that may either be the polymer matrix/ reinforcement or may contain both.

Using the recently developed techniques and technologies, biocomposites with better mechanical properties and thermal stability can be efficiently developed de­pending upon the applications. In fact the use of biocomposites may provide us a healthier environment owing to their multifaceted advantages over conventional polymers.

Keeping in mind the advantages of bio-based materials, this book focuses on the potential efficacy of different biocomposites procured from diverse natural re­sources and preparation and processing of the biocomposites to be used for a variety of applications. The book consists of 17 chapters, and each chapter gives an over­view of a particular biocomposite material, its processing, and successful utilization for selected applications. The chapters summarize recently developed research con­cerning spider silk biocomposites; biogenic hydroxyapatite based implant biocom­posites; liquid crystals and cellulose derivatives biocomposites; bio-based epoxy resins, bio-based polyphenols and lignocellulosic fibers; wood based biocompos­ites; flame retardant biocomposites; biocomposites for industrial noise control, cel­lulose based bionanocomposites, etc. Each individual chapter also focuses on the knowledge and understanding of the interfaces manifested in these biocomposites systems and optimization of different parameters for novel properties. In addition to this, the book also summarizes the recent developments made in the area of injection molding of biocomposites; chemical functionalization of natural fibers, processing of biocomposites and their applications in automotive and biomedical. A number of critical issues and suggestions for future work are discussed in a number of chapters, underscoring the roles of researchers for the efficient development of biocomposite materials through value addition to enhance their use.

As the editors of Green Biorenewable Biocomposites: From Knowledge to In­dustrial Applications, we have attempted to compile, unify, and present the emerg­ing research trends in biopolymers based biocomposites. We hope that this book will contribute to the advancement of both science and technology in this exciting area.

—Vijay Kumar Thakur, PhD

Washington State University — U. S.A.

—Michael R. Kessler, PhD, P. E.

Washington State University — U. S.A.