JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #75 - August/September 2012 - 28

natural fibre

Flax fabric used to create an eco-friendly surfboard
Samsara Surfboards has created a stringerless surfboard using Composites Evolution’s Biotex flax fabric in the place of standard carbon or glass fibre. While carbon fibre is currently the surfing industry’s standard reinforcement for stringerless boards, Samsara was impressed by the technical characteristics of Biotex.
Gemma Smith Communications Manager Composites Evolution Ltd

amsara Surfboards, based in Victoria, is the leading manufacturer of sustainable surfboards in Australia. They produce ultra-highperformance eco surfboards made from the latest bio and sustainable materials available on the market and are constantly looking for new materials to push the envelope in green surfboard design.

more return in high energy from the board through rapid spring back, so when he does a turn the board flexes under tension and when he exits the turn the energy is released back to him resulting in ultimate speed.

Application sectors
Biotex natural reinforcements and intermediates provide the high performance and easy processing normally associated with glass fibre composites but with lower weight and environmental impact. They are suitable for semi-structural and decorative applications in sectors such as automotive, construction, marine, sports and consumer goods. Biotex uses a unique

twistless technology to ensure a high degree of fibre alignment and performance. Standard materials include flax, commingled flax/PLA and commingled flax/PP (other combinations available on request) in formats including yarns, fabrics (woven and non-crimp) and preconsolidated sheets.

From lab to competition
Samsara now plans to do a production run of boards featuring the flax fibre. They will hold a competition to find a test rider to sponsor who will assist with honing the design. They will also be experimenting with different surfacing textiles to work with Biotex; they currently use a 6/4 oz glass fibre mat combination but going forwards they expect to change this to a bamboo fabric which is laminated under tension and is significantly lighter. Samsara have a real passion for sustainability and are pushing the boundaries in green surfboard manufacturing. By using Biotex in combination with other eco materials, they have created a product that performs well, looks great and has minimal impact on the environment. n
More information: www.samsarasurfboards.com www.compositesevolution.com

Amazing performance
Samsara pride themselves on producing Australia’s most eco-friendly surfboards using the latest materials to create the most environmentally friendly boards they can. All materials used are sustainable and the boards are either precision machined or hand-made. Biotex can be used in the same way as glass or carbon fibre allowing Samsara to do a wet layup directly onto the board, which means they didn’t have to change the process. The flax fabric cuts the same and, once wetted out, can be applied to the foam in the same way. The flax surfboard reportedly behaves very well under test. The surfboard also performs amazingly. The new design gives the surfer

Fig. 1. A high-performance, eco-friendly surfboard

28 jec composites magazine / No75 August - September 2012

http://www.samsarasurfboards.com http://www.compositesevolution.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #75 - August/September 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #75 - August/September 2012