As the number of composites used in various high-ended applications increases, it is desirable to develop smart composites that provide usable information feedback and have the ability to self-heal during application. The global biocomposite market is projected to reach 36.76 million USD by 2022, showing how the demand for naturally sourced, non-toxic natural fibres has driven the biocomposite market.

Recently, the development of smart composites in nanoscale has increased rapidly in many different fields, such as infrastructure, biomedicine, packaging, and engineering (automotive, aerospace, and marine). The term ‘smart’ denotes the ability of a material to respond to environmental changes or external impacts to keep it in a safe condition, without substantially changing its original functionality. Furthermore, incorporation of natural fibres in smart composites has drawn even more attention and is expected to create significant impacts, not only in agricultural but also social, economic, and environmental sectors. Reinforcement of nanocelluose fibres has been proven to improve performance and introduce biodegradability to composites. Hence, natural fibres have reserved an important quota in smart composite material selection. Furthermore, hybrid fibre reinforcement with two or more fibres enhances the strength of composites, improving and making them more likely to be selected as materials for smart composites. Regardless of the nature of the raw materials, manufacturing processing is another factor in the production of smart composites. Additive and advanced manufacturing can reduce material waste and minimise labour workload, and the deployment in traditional manufacturing processes of Internet of Things and sensors can help to ensure high production consistency with optimum parameters.

The aim of this Special Issue is to gather papers on the development of smart composites that reinforced by natural fibres, and to share knowledge on their application across multiple different fields. We welcome both original research and review articles.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Smart composites and their applications
• Nanocellulose fibres for reinforcement of polymer composites
• Natural fibres
• Biocomposites
• Hybrid fibre composites
• Green polymer composites
• Functional composites
• Sensor application
• Additive and advanced manufacturing