Environmental sustainability concerns have triggered the need to adopt biodegradable products in different applications. Many natural fibers are being used to fabricate bio-composites having vast applications depending upon their properties. Researchers are exploring different natural fibers available abundantly in different locations. One such fiber can be extracted from the Grewia optiva tree which is abundantly found in the Indian subcontinent. It is important to study the properties of natural fibers used as reinforcement for the fabrication of composites. The properties of natural fibers largely depend upon the location of crop, local climatic conditions, and method of extraction; therefore, composition and properties of the fibers collected from the Okhalkanda block of Nainital district of Uttarakhand have been determined in this research work. Moreover, a comparative study of the lignocellulosic composition and properties of the fibers before and after mercerization with different concentrations of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) has been done. This study will help in estimating the properties of the composite material formed by reinforcement of G. optiva fiber and it has been found that the use of 5% NaOH solution for the treatment of fibers gives best tensile properties i.e., 315.4 MPa tensile strength, 4.94% elongation, 132.04 N-cm work to failure and 61.47 denier count. The decrease in tensile strength for 10% and 15% NaOH treatment can be attributed to a greater percentage decrease in the content of lignin as compared to the percentage increase in cellulose which together contributes to the strength of fibers.

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