Monica Puccini^*1, Eleonora Stefanelli¹, Maurizia Seggiani¹, Elena Balestri², Sandra Vitolo¹

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 117-123, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634138

Abstract In this study, blends of low-density polyethylene (PE) containing 20 wt% of hydrolyzed collagen (HC) from the leather industry were processed by the film blowing technique. A biodegradation study of these innovative materials was performed by two different biodegradation tests, one in terrestrial environment, the other one under aquatic conditions. Degradation rates were determined for both systems and an environmental degradability parameter was calculated. The results proved the positive influence of hydrolyzed collagen on degradation of polyethylene, but also showed a relatively low biological degradability of PE/HC blends under the applied test conditions. More >

Shanshan Huo, Chad A. Ulven^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 106-116, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634136

Abstract The development of flax fiber reinforced polymer composites with improved properties has been increasingly studied by many researchers because of their sustainability. However, the effects of thermal residual stresses on the interfacial properties of flax composites have not been evaluated or very well understood. In this study, the thermal properties of flax, vinyl ester matrices and their composites were accessed by different techniques, including thermomechanical analyzer, dynamic mechanical analyzer, and X-ray diffraction combined with aluminum particles. The effects of thermal properties of flax fibers and vinyl ester resin systems on the mechanical properties of their biocomposites were studied. The theory… More >

Michael R. Snowdon^1,2, Amar K. Mohanty^1,2, Manjusri Misra^1,2*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 94-105, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634134

Abstract This article assesses the performance of a biobased carbon as a nucleator using common techniques to stimulate poly(lactic acid) crystallization and enhance the thermal stability of PLA during injection molding. The combination of a biodegradable plasticizer, poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), along with biobased carbon-rich pyrolyzed biomass char residue and an industrially available microcrystalline talc, were tested for nucleating agent capabilities at additions of 10 wt%. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) data demonstrated that the inclusion of the plasticizer could increase the PLA crystalline content with further improvements when nucleating agent was present. With a higher mold temperature, the PLA crystallinity surpassed 40%… More >

M. Čekon^*, K. Struhala, R. Slávik

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 84-93, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634135

Abstract Cardboard-based packaging components represent a material that has significant potential as a renewable source for exploitation in buildings. This study presents the results of thermal and environmental analyses of existing packaging materials compared with standard conventional thermal insulations.
Experimental measurements were performed to identify the thermal performance of studied cardboard packaging materials. Real-size samples were experimentally tested in laboratory measurements. The thermal resistance and conductivity of all the analyzed samples were measured according to the procedure indicated in the ISO8032 standard. A life-cycle assessment according to ISO 14040 was also performed to evaluate the environmental impacts related to the… More >

N. Elbers¹, C. K. Ranaweera¹, M. Ionescu², X. Wan², P. K. Kahol³, Ram K. Gupta^1,2*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 74-83, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634137

Abstract The objective of this research is to prepare rigid polyurethane (PU) foams from α-phellandrene, a biobased compound. Two types of polyols were synthesized by reacting α-phellandrene with 2-mercaptoethanol and α-thioglycerol via thiol-ene chemistry route. The completion of the reaction was identified by using FTIR. PU foams from α-phellandrene polyols and commercial polyol were compared with regard to foam characteristics and properties. All the PU foams showed apparent density of 28–39 kg/m³ with closed-cell content above 90%. The highest glass transition temperature of 229 °C and compressive strength of 220 kPa were observed for the polyol synthesized by reacting α-phellandrene and… More >

Atikur Rahman^1,3, Chad A. Ulven², Maren A. Johnson¹, Cheyenne Durant¹, Khwaja G. Hossain^*,1

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 62-73, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634133

Abstract Wheat bran, abundant but underutilized, was investigated for its potential as a reinforcement in biocomposites through different pretreatment methods. Pretreatment methods included were dilute sodium hydroxide (NaOH), dilute sulfuric acid (H₂SO₄), liquid hot water (LHW), calcium hydroxide (CaOH), organosolv such as aqueous ethanol (EtOH), and methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK). Changes in chemical composition and fiber characteristics of the treated bran were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Cellulose content increased to 35.1% and 29.6% in brans treated with H₂SO₄ and NaOH, respectively. The SEM micrographs showed surface cleaning of treated bran while maintaining sufficient… More >

Wojciech Kubissa¹, Roman Jaskulski¹, Pavel Reiterman^2*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 53-61, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634103

Abstract This article deals with an experimental study concerning the development of concrete mixtures with significant ecological benefits. The studied concrete mixtures were based on blast-furnace cement, with an additional application of supplementary cementitious materials—fly ash, metakaolin, and silica fume and fluidized fly ash. Coarse aggregate in the form of crushed concrete was applied for all studied concrete mixtures. The experimental program was primarily focused on the assessment of the durability properties of the studied mixtures in terms of mechanical tests, absorption tests, chloride migration coefficient tests, water penetration tests, and accelerated carbonation depth tests. The results obtained showed good potential… More >

Małgorzata Wyciszkiewicz, Agnieszka Saeid^*, Katarzyna Chojnacka

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 39-52, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634132

Abstract The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of using B. megaterium in solubilization of phosphates from different secondary raw materials, such as fish bones, poultry bones, ashes and phosphorite, by identification of the effect of different doses of phosphorus-bearing materials on the growth of microbial cells and the effectiveness of the solubilization process. Both FTIR as well as SEM-EDX techniques were used to compare the effect of the acids on renewable phosphorus source. Two doses of mentioned materials were used: 2 and 30 g/L. The effect of solubilization was expressed as the solubilization factor (SF, %), defined… More >

Kun Li, Xiaona Li, Jing Luo, Jingjing Li, Qiang Gao^*, Jianzhang Li^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 31-38, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634131

Abstract The objective of this study was to use soybean meal and 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDE) to develop a highly water-resistant, soy-based bioadhesive for plywood fabrication. The physical properties and performance characteristics of the resulting adhesive, including solid content, viscosity, water resistance, crystallinity, fracture morphology, thermal behavior, and cracks, were evaluated. The proposed adhesive was compared against the traditional soy adhesive with polyamidoamine-epichlorohydrin (PAE). Results showed that adding 8 g of BDDE into the adhesive formulation improved the solid content up to 32.83% and reduced the viscosity to 27340 mPa·s. The wet shear strength of plywood bonded with the adhesive was… More >

Wenjie Dong, Chenlu Wang, Minyan Gu, Long Yang, Zheng Shen^*, Yalei Zhang^*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.5, Suppl.1, pp. 22-30, 2017, DOI:10.7569/JRM.2017.634126

Abstract Lactic acid can not only be used to produce multiple chemicals, but can also be the building block for biodegradable and biocompatible polylactic acid identified as a renewable resource. As a by-product in biodiesel production, the glycerol yield increases with a rapid expansion of biodiesel. However, in the chemical and environmental fields it is still a great challenge to produce lactic acid or methyl lactate from glycerol. Herein, Sn-Beta zeolite was prepared through solid-state ion exchange (Sn-Beta SSIE) and was tested for base-free one-pot catalytic selective oxidation of glycerol into methyl lactate in methanol. The results showed that a maximum… More >