Study of Waste Jute Fibre Panels (Corchorus capsularis L.) Agglomerated with Portland Cement and Starch

This paper presents an experimental study on the bond behaviour of cement panels reinforced with plant fibres from the recycling of waste jute bags, using starch as a plasticiser. During processing, different proportions of jute (5 wt %, 10 wt %, 15 wt %, and 20 wt %) were used with respect to the weight of cement, and the mixture was exposed to a pressure of 2.6 MPa and a temperature of 100 °C. The density, swelling thickness, internal bonding, flexural strength, and thermal conductivity were studied. Mechanical tests indicated that the values of the modulus of rupture (MOR) and the modulus of elasticity (MOE) increased over time; thus, the jute particles appeared to be protected by the plasticised starch and no degradation was observed. At 28 days, the particleboard with 5% starch had an MOR of 12.82 MPa and an MOE of 3.43 GPa; these values decreased when the jute proportion was higher. The thermal conductivity varied from 0.068 to 0.085 W·m(−1)·K(−1). The main conclusion is that jute-cement-starch composite panels can be manufactured with physical, mechanical, and thermal properties that meet the European standards for use in the construction of buildings as partitions, interior divisions, and thermal insulators.