Open Access
ARTICLE
Andrea Morelli, Dario Puppi, Federica Chiellini*
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 83-112, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634106
Abstract Polymers, particularly those susceptible to undergoing biodegradation under physiological environments,
can be considered the materials of choice for biomedical applications such as tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and
controlled and targeted drug delivery. The development of these relatively new fi elds of biomedical research represents the
driving force towards the exploitation of renewable resources for the obtainment of biobased polymeric biomaterials.
This perspective article reports on the biomedical applications of three major categories of biobased polymeric materials
obtained from renewable resources, namely, polysaccharides, proteins and polyesters of natural origins. Particular emphasis
is given to biobased polymers that display only minor modifi… More >
Open Access
ARTICLE
Hyoe Hatakeyama1,*, Tatsuko Hatakeyama2
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 113-123, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634111
Abstract Lignin and saccharides are two major components of plants. Huge amounts of plant residues are obtained as
by-products of large-scale industries, such as pulp and paper, bio-fuel and the food industry. In this paper,
preparation of polyurethane (PU) foam directly from various kinds of industrial lignin and molasses, which
have scarcely been utilized, is summarized based on our results obtained by recent investigation. A onestep reaction using hydroxyl groups of plant materials as an active site makes it possible to produce a wide
variety of PU, such as foams, sheets, gels and composite matrix. In this paper, PU foams receive… More >
Open Access
ARTICLE
Arne Rüdiger1,2, Peter Hendil-Forssell3, Cecilia Hedfors3, Mats Martinelle3, Stacy Trey4,5,*, Mats Johansson1,4
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 124-140, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634109
Abstract The present study describes the use of an epoxy functional fatty acid, 9,10-epoxy-18-hydroxyoctadecanoic acid
(EFA), extracted from birch (Betula pendula) outer bark to produce thermosets. The purifi ed epoxy fatty acid
was polymerized by enzyme-catalyzed polycondensation utilizing Candida antarctica lipase B (CalB) to form
oligomers with targeted degrees of polymerization (DP) of 3, 6, and 9 and obtained DPs of 2.3, 5.9 and 7.3,
respectively. It was determined that it is possible to fi rst enzymatically polymerize and aliphatically endcap
the epoxy functional fatty acid resulting in controlled oligomer lengths while also maintaining the epoxy
functionality for further reaction by… More >
Open Access
ARTICLE
Thomas J. Nelson, Lindsey Bultema, Neal Eidenschink, Dean C. Webster*
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 141-153, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2013.634113
Abstract Bio-based polyols with high functionality were successfully synthesized by ring-opening epoxidized sucrose
esters of soybean oil with methanol under acidic conditions, and were subsequently formulated with blocked
isocyanates to form one package polyurethanes (1KPU). The bio-based polyols were characterized by gel
permeation chromatography (GPC), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, proton nuclear magnetic
resonance (1
H-NMR) spectroscopy, and Brookfi eld viscosity. Bio-based coatings were prepared by formulating
the polyols with blocked polyisocyanates based on isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) and hexamethylene
diisocyanate (HDI). Two types of bio-based polyols were synthesized and the ratio of NCO:OH functional
groups was varied to explore the effect… More >
Open Access
ARTICLE
Sinto Jacob1, Manjusri Misra1,2, Amar Mohanty1,2,*
Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.2, pp. 154-165, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634107
Abstract This study investigated the use of potassium persulfate (KPS) as an initiator for the grafting of methyl
methacrylate (MMA) onto softwood kraft lignin. Ammonium iron (II) sulfate hexahydrate was used as a
catalyst to overcome the inherent inhibition of lignin to free radical grafting and to make lignin copolymer
under mild conditions using an aqueous medium. The infl uence of temperature, initiator concentration, time
of reaction and monomer concentration on percentage of grafting were studied. A maximum of 31% grafting
was achieved at 55ο
C. Graft copolymer was identifi ed from the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrum
by the new… More >