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 >

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ARTICLE

Hyoe Hatakeyama^1,*, 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 >

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ARTICLE

Arne Rüdiger^1,2, Peter Hendil-Forssell³, Cecilia Hedfors³, Mats Martinelle³, Stacy Trey^4,5,*, Mats Johansson^1,4
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 >

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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 >

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Sinto Jacob¹, Manjusri Misra^1,2, Amar Mohanty^1,2,*
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 >

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