Contact angle of modified fibrovascular bundle of salacca (Salacca sumatrana Becc.) frond by NaOH+Na2SO3 combination

The fibrovascular bundle (FVB) of the salacca frond is one of the potential raw materials in the development of bio-composite technology. The purpose of this study was to investigate the wettability of FVB using the contact angle method after the alkali modification treatment. The method of this research was to use FVB frond of Salacca sumatrana Becc. which was treated with alkaline modification of the combination of NaOH+Na2SO3 at various concentrations. The results showed that the combination of NaOH 1M+Na2SO3 0.4 M had the smallest contact angle, which means that the FVB has a good wettability value compared to the control treatment. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the modification of NaOH+Na2SO3 can increase the wettability of FVB.