A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda

Vegetable fibers have attracted increasing attention from researchers and manufacturers in the textile and apparel industry for their renewable, biodegradable, and eco-friendly features. However, due to the scattered nature and rapid development, a review that adopts a holistic perspective and analy...

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Main Authors: Shuyang Li, Chris K. Y. Lo, Li Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2024-12-01
Series:Journal of Natural Fibers
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15440478.2024.2397692
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author Shuyang Li
Chris K. Y. Lo
Li Li
author_facet Shuyang Li
Chris K. Y. Lo
Li Li
author_sort Shuyang Li
collection DOAJ
description Vegetable fibers have attracted increasing attention from researchers and manufacturers in the textile and apparel industry for their renewable, biodegradable, and eco-friendly features. However, due to the scattered nature and rapid development, a review that adopts a holistic perspective and analyzes the knowledge evolution structure of the vegetable fiber domain could hardly be found. This paper systematically reviewed the research progress and frontiers of the vegetable fiber domain over the past 25 years, with bibliometric analysis and knowledge mapping (by VOSviewer) of the 179 relevant articles retrieved from the Web of Science. A rapid increase in publications and citations was observed in the recent 5 years. India, China, and Turkey, with competitive textile industries and diverse agricultural sectors, have been active in vegetable fiber research. According to the clustering result of co-citation analysis, fiber-reinforced composites, vegetable fibers with sound/thermal insulation, and natural colorants were the main research topics with the most cited articles. “Knitting,” “insulation,” “Indian pineapple leaf,” and “color strength” were identified as the emerging research hotspots based on the keyword co-occurrence network. Future studies are expected to improve efficiency and automation, meanwhile decreasing the cost and environmental impact throughout the whole process chain of vegetable fibers.
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spelling doaj-art-88c874f8ee644f12973e2812bc5f8e6c2025-08-20T02:34:27ZengTaylor & Francis GroupJournal of Natural Fibers1544-04781544-046X2024-12-0121110.1080/15440478.2024.2397692A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research AgendaShuyang Li0Chris K. Y. Lo1Li Li2School of Fashion and Textiles, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong KongDepartment of Logistics and Maritime Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong KongDivision of Integrative Systems and Design, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Kowloon, Clear Water Bay, Hong KongVegetable fibers have attracted increasing attention from researchers and manufacturers in the textile and apparel industry for their renewable, biodegradable, and eco-friendly features. However, due to the scattered nature and rapid development, a review that adopts a holistic perspective and analyzes the knowledge evolution structure of the vegetable fiber domain could hardly be found. This paper systematically reviewed the research progress and frontiers of the vegetable fiber domain over the past 25 years, with bibliometric analysis and knowledge mapping (by VOSviewer) of the 179 relevant articles retrieved from the Web of Science. A rapid increase in publications and citations was observed in the recent 5 years. India, China, and Turkey, with competitive textile industries and diverse agricultural sectors, have been active in vegetable fiber research. According to the clustering result of co-citation analysis, fiber-reinforced composites, vegetable fibers with sound/thermal insulation, and natural colorants were the main research topics with the most cited articles. “Knitting,” “insulation,” “Indian pineapple leaf,” and “color strength” were identified as the emerging research hotspots based on the keyword co-occurrence network. Future studies are expected to improve efficiency and automation, meanwhile decreasing the cost and environmental impact throughout the whole process chain of vegetable fibers.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15440478.2024.2397692Vegetable fiberscellulosic fibersnatural fibersbibliometricknowledge mappingsustainability
spellingShingle Shuyang Li
Chris K. Y. Lo
Li Li
A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
Journal of Natural Fibers
Vegetable fibers
cellulosic fibers
natural fibers
bibliometric
knowledge mapping
sustainability
title A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
title_full A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
title_fullStr A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
title_full_unstemmed A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
title_short A Systematic Literature Review on the Investigation and Application of Vegetable Fibers in Textiles/Apparel and Future Research Agenda
title_sort systematic literature review on the investigation and application of vegetable fibers in textiles apparel and future research agenda
topic Vegetable fibers
cellulosic fibers
natural fibers
bibliometric
knowledge mapping
sustainability
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/15440478.2024.2397692
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