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The FLOWER project aims to develop locally produced flax fibre reinforcements for the composites industry at a lower cost than existing products, significantly improving the performance, environmental performance and end-of-life of current products. Indeed, the use of composites is very widespread in industry: they represent about 20% of the mass of a car and almost all of that of recreational boats, but they are currently generally made of glass fibres and a non-recyclable petro-sourced resin.

The FLOWER project therefore aims to develop two main types of innovative linen reinforcements, in particular by their surface mass and architecture, which are efficient and best adapted to the specificities of the composites industry.

This project will thus actively participate in identifying the common needs of the Channel area, in particular in terms of research and environmental preservation, while allowing the development of local flax production and processing chains. Ultimately, the Flower project aims to reach three main application sectors: boating, automotive and advertising, including advertising displays, by 2022.

To carry out these actions, the project brings together partners with complementary skills to cover the entire value chain: from agricultural fibre production to R&D and the marketing of industrial parts.

Supported by the University of South Brittany (IRDL Laboratory), FLOWER brings together 4 academic partners (University of South Brittany, INRA of Nantes, University of Cambridge and University of Portsmouth) and 4 industrial partners (the companies Kaïros, Teillage Vandecandelaere, EcoTechnilin and Howa-Tramico) located on both sides of the Channel.

Within INRA, the BIA Unitwill be in charge of the "treatment" component of the FLOWER project, which aims to modify flax fibre raw materials for the two main families of targeted composites, in order to improve performance according to the "product" specifications. The pre-treatments planned will explore different biological or physical means: microbiological or enzymatic, ionizing radiation, plasma, ozonolysis, ultrasound.

A thesis co-supervised by the PVPP and MC2 teams (J. Beaugrand/S. Guessasma) will address the multi-scale damage of flax bundles, studying the structure-behaviour relationship through experimental and numerical approaches. This thesis will be carried out in close collaboration with an industrial company working on the production and processing of flax (Depestele group). Another thesis directed by A. Bourmaud of the IRDL and co-supervised by J. Beaugrand, in collaboration with F. Jamme of the Synchrotron SOLEIL, will focus on the exploration of the development and structure of flax fibers for use as composite reinforcement materials. Finally, 1 to 3 other theses will be planned within the framework of this project, subject to obtaining additional funding.

• Duration of the project: 4 years (Feb. 2018 – April 2022)
• Academic partners:
  • Université de Bretagne Sud
  • INRA de Nantes
  • University of Cambridge
  • University of Portsmouth
• Private partners :
  • Kaïros
  • Teillage Vandecandelaere
  • EcoTechnilin
  • Howa-Tramico
• Coordination: Laboratoire IRDL, Université Bretagne Sud, France
• Budget:  4 717 674.56€ (3 179 427.16€  ERDF)