**2. Natural fibres**

Many different kinds of natural cellulosic fibre such as cotton, hemp, sisal, coconut fibres and oil palm fibres are used in different composite products. Properties of the natural fibres depend mostly on the nature of the plant, locality in which it is grown, age of the plant, and the extraction method that is used (Sreekala et al., 1997). Coir is a hard and tough multi cellular fibre with a central portion called ''lacuna.'', On the other hand, banana fibre is weak and cylindrical in shape. Sisal is an important leaf fibre and is strong. Pineapple leaf fibre is soft and has high cellulose content. Many studies have been done on the natural fibre based composite products (Maldas & Kokta, 1990; Pavithran et al., 1987; Shah & Lakkad, 1981; Sreekala et al., 1997). Table 1 summarised the chemical and mechanical properties of some natural fibres.
