Eliane Trovatti^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.1, pp. 28-41, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634104

Abstract Biobased polymers have been gaining the attention of society and industry because of concerns about the depletion of fossil fuels and growing environmental problems. Cellulose fi bers are one of the most promising biopolymers to be explored as a component of composite materials with emergent properties for new applications. Bacterial Cellulose (BC), a special kind of cellulose produced by microorganisms, is endowed with unique properties. In this context, this perspective offers an overview about the properties of BC that would enable it to become a commodity. This includes an appraisal of the current BC market, as compared with other available… More >

Yanxia Zhang¹, Tiina Nypelö^1,*, Carlos Salas¹, Julio Arboleda¹, Ingrid C. Hoeger^1,*, Orlando J. Rojas^1,2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.3, pp. 195-211, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2013.634115

Abstract Cellulose nanofi brils (CNF), also known as nanofi brillar cellulose (NFC), are an advanced biomaterial made mainly from renewable forest and agricultural resources that have demonstrated exceptional performance in composites. In addition, they have been utilized in barrier coatings, food, transparent fl exible fi lms and other applications. Research on CNF has advanced rapidly over the last decade and several of the fundamental questions about production and characterization of CNF have been addressed. An interesting shift in focus in the recent reported literature indicates increased efforts aimed at taking advantage of the unique properties of CNF. This includes its nanoscale… More >

Sudhakar Muniyasamy¹, Andrew Anstey², Murali M. Reddy¹, Manju Misra^1,2, Amar Mohanty^1,2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.4, pp. 253-272, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2013.634117

Abstract Lignocellulosic composites have attracted interest from both academia and industry due to their benefi cial environmental and sustainability attributes. The lignocellulosic industry has seen remarkable improvements in the development of composites for high performance applications. Both biodegradable as well as non-biodegradable polymers are used in the design and engineering of lignocellulosic composites. Biodegradability studies of lignocellulosic composites in soil and composting environments help in planning their end-life management. Biodegradability tests are complex and dependent on the environment in which the testing is carried out. Due to this, standards have been developed by international agencies such as the American Society for… More >

Vu Thanh Phuong^1,2, Steven Verstichel³, Patrizia Cinelli^1,4, Irene Anguillesi¹, Maria-Beatrice Coltelli¹, Andrea Lazzeri^1,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.1, pp. 35-41, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2013.634136

Abstract Cellulose acetate (CDA) cannot be processed as raw material because it starts to decompose before melting. Triacetin and diacetin were tested to improve CDA processing versus conventional phthalate as environmentally sustainable plasticizers, because of their low toxicity and fast biodegradability. The addition of triacetin and diacetin allowed melt processing of CDA and the results of tensile tests outlined their effect as plasticizers. The values of mechanical properties were compatible with the requirements for applications in rigid packaging. From the results of biodegradation tests it can be concluded that for pure cellulose acetate, complete biodegradation was obtained within 200 days of… More >

Antonio J. F. Carvalho

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.2, pp. 118-122, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634108

Abstract Two nanocelluloses from eucalyptus, namely microfi brillated cellulose (MFC) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNC), were prepared and compared by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The MFC fi bers are 20–30 nm wide and are composed of very homogeneous bundles of aligned regular elementary fi brils of 3–5 nm diameter. They show long straight portions and short fl exible zones, attributed to crystalline and amorphous zones, respectively. The needle-shaped CNC was approximately 200 nm long and 10 nm wide in the wider portion. A model for the MFC structure, whose fl exible zones are formed by alignment of the amorphous portion of the… More >

Marta Martínez-Sanz, Amparo López-Rubio, Maria José Fabra, José M. Lagaron^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.2, pp. 107-117, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634106

Abstract Due to their high crystallinity and aspect ratio, bacterial cellulose nanowhiskers (BCNW) represent an appealing choice for the development of fully biobased nanocomposite materials with high barrier performance. However, their strong tendency to self-associate, together with their highly hydrophilic character, has restricted the production of nanocomposites containing cellulose nanowhiskers by industrial processing techniques such as melt compounding. Th is article presents an overview of the latest published results carried out within our group and also in other relevant literature, which have led to the development of an effi cient strategy for the incorporation of highly dispersed BCNW by melt compounding… More >

M.C. Lagel¹, A. Pizzi^1,2, S. Giovando³, A. Celzard⁴

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.3, pp. 220-229, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634113

Abstract With the depletion of fossil resources, tannin extracts can be a natural alternative to some synthetic products. Hydrolysable chestnut tannin extracts have been used to partially replace phenol in PF resins for phenolic rigid foams. Phenol-formaldehyde-chestnut tannin (PFT) phenolic foams were initially made from copolymerized PFT resins of different molar ratio. The PFT foams so prepared were tested for thermal conductivity, these being slightly worse than that of pure PF foams; and for mechanical and water absorption, these two properties being better than those of pure PF foams. Indeed, PF resins represent an important part of synthetic resins. They are… More >

Aparecido Junior de Menezes^1,3,*, Elson Longo², Fábio Lima Leite¹, Alain Dufresne³

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.4, pp. 306-313, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634121

Abstract In the work presented in this article surface chemical modifi cation was applied to ramie cellulose nanocrystals by grafting organic acid chlorides presenting different lengths of the aliphatic chain. The objective of this surface chemical treatment was to enhance the nonpolar nature of the grafted nanocrystals and improve their dispersibility in a nonpolar polymeric matrix. The occurrence of the chemical modifi cation was evaluated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, the degree of crystallinity by X-ray diffraction, and the morphology by scanning electron microscopy with fi eld emission gun (FEG-SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The morphology and crystallinity provided… More >

P. Sittisart^1,*, M.M. Hyland¹, M.A. Hodgson¹, C. Nguyen², A. Fernyhough³

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.4, pp. 264-269, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634123

Abstract A series of composites based on polypropylene with different loadings of nickel-coated cellulose fi bres (NCCF) were fabricated with the aim to create a composite suitable for EMI shielding and/or electrostatic discharge application. Various properties such as EMI shielding effectiveness, surface resistivity, volume resistivity and fl exural strength were characterised according to ASTM standard. Both surface and volume resistivity suggested that the electrical conductivity of NCCF was not high enough and the composite remains electrically non-conducting up to 40 wt% loading of NCCF. However, nickel particles were still able to shield electromagnetic radiation regardless of their connectivity and conductivity. This… More >

Yadong Liu¹, Guangcheng Huang^1,2, Yuanyuan Pang^1,2, Miaomiao Han¹, Shengxiang Ji^1,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.3, No.2, pp. 113-119, 2015, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634141

Abstract In this work, we report a one-pot synthesis of amphiphilic miktoarm cellulose graft copolymers, cellulose (-graft-oligo(L-lactide))-graft-oligo(N-isopropylacrylamide) (Cell(-g-OLLA)-g-ONIPAM), with dual side chains of oligo(L-lactide) and oligo(N-isopropylacrylamide) using 2-bromoisobutyl bromide functionalized cellulose (Cell(-OH)-Br) as the macroinitiator, by simultaneously conducting ring-opening polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization using Cu/CuBr/PMDETA/Sn(Oct)₂ as the catalytic system. The chemical structures and thermal properties of Cell(-g-OLLA)-g-ONIPAMs were characterized with ¹ H and ¹³C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and thermal gravimetric analysis. Cell (-g-OLLA)-g-ONIPAM could self-assemble into micelles in the aqueous solution as confi rmed by environmental scanning electron microscopy and dynamic light scattering analyses. The… More >