M.A. Pérez-Limiñana^*, M.M. Sánchez-Navarro, M.J. Escoto-Palacios, F. Arán-Aís, C. Orgilés-Barceló

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.4, No.1, pp. 3-8, 2016, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2015.634119

Abstract The tanning i ndustry generates very large quantities of industrial wastes. The advancement of European policy and legislation protecting the environment has prompted the transformation of tannery solid waste materials into valuable co-products, useful to be recycled or employed in other industries. The objective of this work is to obtain gelatine from tannery wastes, in order to reuse it as natural microencapsulating agent in the production of active materials with functional properties. Concretely, this paper focuses on the influence of the extraction temperature on gelatine properties and its microencapsulating ability. An alternative enzymatic pre-treatment to More >

Erythrina Stavila, Katja Loos^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.3, No.4, pp. 268-280, 2015, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2015.634102

Abstract The selective and specific features of enzymes have drawn an enormous amount of attention for use as in-vitro catalysts in polymerization reactions. Various studies on the enzymatic synthesis of polyesters, polycarbonates, polysaccharides, polypeptides, and polyamides have been performed and some have been implemented on an industrial scale. Particularly in the synthesis of polyester and polyamides, lipases are the most used enzymes as catalysts for their polymerization. Polyamides are considered to be one of the largest engineering polymer families used in the automotive, electrical and electronics, and consumer goods industries; thus the enzymatic synthesis of polyamides will More >

Rosana Moriana^1,2,*, Emma Strömberg¹, Amparo Ribes², Sigbritt Karlsson^1,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.2, pp. 145-156, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634103

Abstract The purpose of this work was to study the effect of hydrothermal, biological and photo degradation on natural fi bres reinforced biodegradable starch-based (Mater-BiKE) composites to characterize the structural changes occurring under exposure to different environments. The composites water-uptake rate was hindered by the interfacial interactions between matrix and fi bres. Thermal, structural and morphological analysis provided useful information about the irreversible changes in the properties of the composites caused by degradation in soil and photodegradation, and their synergetic effects. The effects due to the photo-oxidation and degradation in soil on the composites depended on… 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 More >

M.C. Lagel^1,*, A. Pizzi^1,2, S. Giovando³

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.2, No.3, pp. 207-219, 2014, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2014.634111

Abstract Natural hydrolysable chestnut tannin extracts used to partially substitute phenol in Phenol-Formaldehyde (PF) resins for phenolic rigid foams were analysed by matrix-assisted desorption ionization time of fl ight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. PF only, chestnut only and PF-chestnut copolymerised oligomer types and distribution were determined. MALDI-TOF analyses of a PF control resin (with the same molar ratio) and of chestnut tannin extracts were performed in order to identify the peaks of molecular weights corresponding to copolymers of chestnut tannins with phenol and formaldehyde. More >

Daan S. van Es

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.1, pp. 61-72, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634108

Abstract In this perspectives paper we will look at the state-of-the-art in rigid renewable building blocks for biobased materials, with a focus on two types of carbohydrate-based difunctional monomers, i.e.,isohexides and furan- 2,5-dicarboxylic acid (FDCA). More >

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, More >

Ying Xia¹, Rafael L. Quirino², Richard C. Larock^3,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.1, pp. 3-27, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2012.634103

Abstract Vegetable oils are promising renewable resources for polymers, due to their low cost, ready availability, and versatile applications. Recently, increasing attention has been paid to vegetable oil-based polymeric materials due to both economic and environmental concerns. This review focuses on the latest developments in vegetable oil-based thermosets prepared by a variety of polymerization methods. The thermosets obtained exhibit a wide range of thermomechanical properties from soft and fl exible rubbers to rigid and hard plastics. Some of the thermosets have properties comparable to petroleum-based analogs and show promise as replacements, providing possible solutions to environmental More >

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 More >

Belén Begines, Francisca Zamora, M. Violante de Paz, Isaac Roffé, Manuel Mancera, Juan A. Galbis^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.1, No.3, pp. 212-221, 2013, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2013.634119

Abstract A batch of linear [m,n]-type sugar-based polyureas was synthesized by polyaddition reaction in solution from hexamethylene diisocyanate or 4,4’-methylene-bis(phenyl isocyanate) with the acyclic 2,3,4-tri-O-methyl-1,5- diamino-alditols having L-arabino, or xylo confi guration or the bicyclic 1,6-diamino-1,6-dideoxy-2,4:3,5-diO-methylene-D-glucitol. The polymers were obtained in good yields and fair molecular weights. All these polyureas were semicrystalline materials showing well-defi ned melting transition within the 86−171°C range, with T_g s being dependent on the aliphatic or aromatic nature of the diisocyanate used, and on the cyclic or acyclic chemical structure of the sugar moiety. They were found to be stable up to around More >