ABSTRACT
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Appendix ............................................................................................................................ 515
References .......................................................................................................................... 515
In a broad sense, the source of vegetable fibers, as the name suggests, is the rich plant life on
planet Earth. In a narrower sense, different fibers come from different parts of different
plants. In general, fibrous assemblies of various types are the structural components of plant
life. The load-deformation characteristics of these assemblies are determined by the func-
tional role played by the plant part in the total architecture of the plant, and the soil-climate
environment in which it grows.
