Febrina Dellarose Boer^1,2,3, Jérémy Valette^1,2, Jean-Michel Commandré^1,2, Mériem Fournier^3,4, Marie-France Thévenon^1,2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 97-117, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.013147

Abstract Sugarcane bagasse was pyrolyzed using a laboratory fixed bed reactor to produce char and its by-product (pyrolysis liquid). The pyrolysis experiments were carried out using different temperatures (400°C and 500°C), heating rate (1 °C/min and 10 °C/min), and holding time (30 min and 60 min). Char was characterized according to its thermal properties, while the pyrolysis liquid was tested for its anti-fungal and anti-termite activities. Pyrolysis temperature and heating rate had a significant influence on the char properties and the yield of char and pyrolysis liquid, where a high-quality char and high yield of pyrolysis liquid can be obtained at… More >

Dafni Foti¹, Costas Passialis¹, Elias Voulgaridis¹, Stergios Adamopoulos^2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 85-96, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.011868

Abstract Recycled polystyrene in combination with paraffin wax, alkyd resin, and gum rosin were used as components in formulations to investigate their water repellency when applied to cellulosic filter paper substrates. Polystyrene was used in concentration of 5, 10, 15 and 20%, alkyd resin and gum rosin of 5% each and paraffin wax of 0.5%. Totally, twenty four water repellent solutions were prepared. Water repellency was evaluated in terms of water absorption of the cellulosic fibrous mats. The relations between retention of solid substances of the formulations and grammage and water absorption of filter paper samples were also determined. The results… More >

Xianjun Wang¹, Junzhen Di^1,*, Yanrong Dong¹, Yu Yang¹, Bing Liang², Fankang Meng¹, Tingting Wang¹, Wenbo An¹, Zengxin Li³, Jianzhi Guo³

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 163-177, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.011678

Abstract

The study is aimed at the problem of high content of Cr⁶⁺, Cr³⁺ and SO₄^2– is high and low pH value in acid mine drainage (AMD). Moreover, treatment of AMD by sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) requires the addition of carbon source, while the treating effectiveness is not good enough on its own. The sugarcane slag, the corn cob and the sunflower straw were selected as the SRB carbon source cooperating with iron scrap to construct the dynamic columns 1, 2 and 3. The mechanism of removing Cr⁶⁺, Cr³⁺, SO₄^2– and H⁺ and the regularity of sustained… More >

Dexby de Guzman, Rizalinda de Leon^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 145-162, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.011646

Abstract Levulinic acid (LA) is a platform biorefinery chemical from biomass which can be converted to green solvents, plasticizers, polymer precursors, bio-based cleaning agents, fuels and fuel additives. This study assessed the potential of SnCl₂-based mixed acid systems as catalyst in the hydrothermal conversion of microcrystalline cellulose to levulinic acid. Maximum LA yield of 36.2 mol% was achieved using 0.2 M SnCl₂ concentration at test conditions of 3 h, 180°C and 1% w/v cellulose loading. To reduce precipitate formation and further improve LA yield, the strategy employed was to combine SnCl₂ (a Lewis acid) with conventional mineral acids (Bronsted acids). Evaluation… More >

Ting Jiang^1,3, Chunmei Yang^1,2,*, Yueqiang Yu³, Bakary S. Doumbia^1,2, Jiuqing Liu^1,*, Yan Ma^1,2

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 119-128, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.011490

Abstract

As a natural and environmentally friendly renewable material, Northeast China ash wood (NCAW) (Fraxinus mandshurica Rupr.) was cut by water-jet assisted CO₂ laser (WACL), the surface quality was evaluated by surface roughness of cut section. The surface roughness was measured by three-dimensional (3D) profilometry. Furthermore, the micromorphology of machined surface was observed by scanning electronic microscopy (SEM). Carbon content changes of machined surface were measured by energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). A relationship between surface roughness and cutting parameters was established using response surface methodology (RSM). It is concluded that the cutting speed, laser power and water pressure played an important… More >

Tabrej Khan¹, Mohamed Thariq Hameed Sultan^1,2,3,*, Mohammad Jawaid², Syafiqah Nur Azrie Safri², Ain Umaira Md Shah², Mohd Shukry Abdul Majid^4,5,*, Nik Noriman Zulkepli⁶, Haliza Jaya⁶

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.1, pp. 73-84, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.011385

Abstract This research focused on the dynamic mechanical and thermal properties of woven mat jute/kenaf/jute (J/K/J) and kenaf/jute/kenaf (K/J/K) hybrid composites. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and Thermo-gravimetric Analysis (TGA) were used to study the effect of layering sequence on the thermal properties of kenaf/jute hybrid composites. The DMA results; it was found that the differences in the stacking sequence between the kenaf/jute composites do not affect their storage modulus, loss modulus and damping factor. From the TGA and DMA results, it has been shown that stacking sequence has given positive effect to the kenaf/jute hybrid composite compared to pure epoxy composite.… More >

Senyun Liu^1,2, Qinglin Liu^1,2, Xian Yi^1,2,*, Yizhou Shen^4,*, Long Guo^1,2, Wenqing Hou⁴, Haifeng Chen³, Zhen Wang⁴

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.8, No.12, pp. 1617-1631, 2020, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2020.014158

Abstract The aim of this study is to explore the heterogeneous ice nucleation behavior based on controllable micro-cubic array structure surfaces from the statistic perspective. To this end, we firstly constructed a group of micro-cubic array structures on silicon substrates by a selective plasma etching technique. After grafting low-free-energy substance, the as-constructed micro-cubic array structure surfaces exhibited higher non-wettability with the water contact angle being up to 150°. On this basis, 500 cycles of freezing and melting processes were accurately recorded to analyze the instantaneous ice nucleation behavior according to the statistical results of freezing temperature. As a consequence, the statistical… More >

Nishit Savla¹, Raksha Anand², Soumya Pandit^2,*, Ram Prasad^3,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.8, No.12, pp. 1581-1605, 2020, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2020.011803

Abstract Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are an attractive innovation at the nexus of energy and water security for the future. MFC utilizes electrochemically active microorganisms to oxidize biodegradable substrates and generate bioelectricity in a single step. The material of the anode plays a vital role in increasing the MFC’s power output. The anode in MFC can be upgraded using nanomaterials providing benefits of exceptional physicochemical properties. The nanomaterials in anode gives a high surface area, improved electron transfer promotes electroactive biofilm. Enhanced power output in terms of Direct current (DC) can be obtained as the consequence of improved microbe-electrode interaction. However,… More >

Lei Guo^1,2,3, Zi Guan¹, Lixia Guo^1,2,3,*, Weiping Shen¹, Zhilong Xue¹, Pingping Chen¹, Mingru Li¹

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.8, No.12, pp. 1711-1727, 2020, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2020.013415

Abstract A recycled aggregate (RA) was prepared by crushing and sieving demolished discarded concrete pavements and was subsequently tested and analyzed to determine its various physical properties. On this basis, pervious concrete (PC) mix proportions were designed. Coarse RA particles with sizes of 5–10 and 10–20 mm were selected. Concrete specimens were prepared with a water–cement ratio of 0.3, an aggregate–cement ratio of 4.5, the substitute rates of RA with 0, 25%, 50%, 75% and a single-/double-gap-graded RA mix (mass ratio of particles with sizes of 5–10 mm to particles with sizes of 10–20 mm: 1:1, 1:2, 2:1, 2:3 and 3:2).… More >

Wenbei Bi¹, Zengfeng Yan^1,*, Huan Zhao¹, Lixin Sun², Xudong Wang^3,4, Zhengmo Zhang³

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.8, No.12, pp. 1691-1710, 2020, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2020.012808

Abstract Murals in Mogao Grottoes consist of three parts: support layer, earthen plasters and paint layer. The earthen plasters play a key role in the preservation of murals. It is a mixture of Dengban soil, sand, and plant fiber. Two different natural fibers, hemp fiber and cotton fiber, were reinforced to earthen plasters in the same percentage to evaluate the influence on hygrothermal performance. The two types of earthen plasters were studied: one containing hemp fiber in the fine plaster (HFP) and the other containing cotton fiber in the fine plaster (CFP). Specific heat capacity, dry thermal conductivity, water vapor permeability,… More >