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 >

Ewa Szefer^*, Agnieszka Leszczyńska, Edyta Hebda, Krzysztof Pielichowski

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.9, No.6, pp. 1127-1142, 2021, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2021.014584

Abstract The aim of this work was to use cellulose nanocrystals that were obtained by hydrolysis in phosphoric acid solution and further modified with succinic anhydride in the microwave field for PLA reinforcement. A series of all-bionanocomposites containing unmodified and surface modified cellulose nanocrystals with CNC content in the range of 1–3 %_w.t. were obtained by melt blending and tested by XRD, SEM, DSC and DMA to investigate the effect of surface esterification of CNCs on the structure, morphology, dynamic mechanical properties of bionanocomposites, as well as phase transitions of PLA in the presence of cellulosic nanofiller. DMA investigations showed the… More > Graphic Abstract

Galia Moreno, Karla Ramirez, Marianelly Esquivel, Guillermo Jimenez*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.6, No.4, pp. 362-369, 2018, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634167

Abstract Cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose and nanocellulose were prepared from three agricultural waste resources: pineapple leaf (PALF), banana rachis (BR), and sugarcane bagasse (SCB). Each waste resource was first converted into microcrystalline cellulose which was subsequently converted into cellulose nanoparticles by using mild (30% w/v) and strong (60% w/v) sulfuric acid concentrations for extraction. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to characterize each waste resource and extracted cellulosic materials. Furthermore, nanocelluloses were studied by zeta potential, size analysis, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Cellulose nanowhiskers were successfully obtained and isolated with a 33% average… More >

Jose Luis Orellana, Michael Mauhar, Christopher L. Kitchens^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.4, No.5, pp. 340-350, 2016, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2016.634126

Abstract Polylactic acid (PLA) is one of the most widely used biodegradable polymers due to the ability to synthesize it economically at industrial scale and its favorable properties for many consumer products. However, the rigid nature of PLA is not desirable for specific applications, requiring the incorporation of effective bioderived additives in order to enhance the PLA toughness and broaden applications. In this work, PLA was modified by graft polymerization of polyacrylic acid (PLA-g-PAA) to increase the hydrophilicity to promote compatibilization of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) or high molecular polyethylene glycol (PEG). CNCs were found to act as a nucleating agent for… More >