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Polymers
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Advances in Green Technologies for Preparation and Application of Wood...
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Advances in Green Technologies for Preparation and Application of Wood Composites

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomacromolecules, Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 August 2024 | Viewed by 3540

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Filipa A. Vicente

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Guest Editor
Department of Catalysis and Chemical Reaction Engineering, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: biopolymers; green downstream processes; alternative solvents; circular economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Jorge F. B. Pereira

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Guest Editor
Department of Chemical Engineering, CIEPQPF, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: Ionic liquids; bioprocessing; proteins; enzymes; stability; downstream
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Giorgio Tofani

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Guest Editor
Department of Catalysis and Chemical Reaction Engineering, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1001 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Interests: paper and pulp technology; biorefinery concept; wood chemistry; lignin chemistry; green solvents; lignin-based resins; biomaterials.

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the ominous threat of depleting resources and the pressing climate crisis, the pursuit of carbon neutrality has taken on a new sense of urgency. Both governments and corporations have set ambitious climate goals for the near and distant future, resulting in renewed momentum towards a more sustainable world. Nevertheless, with the ecological footprint of the Earth reminding us of our precarious future, it is crucial that we act with stronger determination and dedication to guarantee a habitable planet for future generations. An attractive solution to our current reliance on petroleum-based value chains is the use of lignocellulose biomass as an abundant and renewable source of a variety of raw materials. Hence, the potential of wood-based products has captured the attention of both scientific and industrial communities. Fibers and biopolymers are utilized in the production of adhesives, resins, and composites, each of which are widely used in various sectors such as construction, agriculture, and food and beverage manufacturing. However, due to the increasing environmental and social concerns, it is crucial to explore greener technologies and/or solvents for obtaining raw materials, developing high-performance materials, and evaluating their recyclability and biodegradability in the production of wood-based products. Advances in these areas will enable sustainable development and facilitate the transition towards a circular bioeconomy. 

This Special Issue focuses on providing an overview of the current scientific progress in the preparation and application of wood-based materials, with a particular interest in green technologies and/or solvents. The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following disciplinary aspects:

  • Biorefinery concept for wood-based materials production;
  • Wood-based products manufacturing processes and characterisation;
  • Applications of wood-based products;
  • Studies on wood-based product recyclability;
  • Studies on wood-based product biodegradability. 

Therefore, we are pleased to invite you to submit original research articles and reviews for inclusion in this Special Issue of Polymers.

Dr. Filipa A. Vicente
Dr. Jorge F. B. Pereira
Dr. Giorgio Tofani
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biopolymers
  • biorenewable resources
  • biomaterials
  • biorefinery
  • natural fibres
  • wood composite
  • recycling
  • biodegradability
  • wood products design and characterization

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 44826 KiB  
Article
Spray Coating of Wood with Nanoparticles from Lignin and Polylactic Glycolic Acid Loaded with Thyme Essential Oils
by Florian Zikeli, Jasmina Jusic, Cleofe Palocci, Giuseppe Scarascia Mugnozza and Manuela Romagnoli
Polymers 2024, 16(7), 947; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16070947 - 30 Mar 2024
Viewed by 806
Abstract
Ensuring the longevity of wooden constructions depends heavily on the preservation process. However, several traditional preservation methods involving fossil-based compounds have become outdated because they pose a significant risk to the environment and to human health. Therefore, the use of bio-based and bioactive [...] Read more.
Ensuring the longevity of wooden constructions depends heavily on the preservation process. However, several traditional preservation methods involving fossil-based compounds have become outdated because they pose a significant risk to the environment and to human health. Therefore, the use of bio-based and bioactive solutions, such as essential oils, has emerged as a more sustainable alternative in protecting wood from biotic attacks. The entrapment of essential oils in polymeric carrier matrices provides protection against oxidation and subsequent degradation or rapid evaporation, which implies the loss of their biocidal effect. In this work, lignin as well as PLGA nanoparticles containing the essential oils from two different thyme species (Thymus capitatus and T. vulgaris) were applied on beech wood samples using spray coating. The prepared coatings were investigated using FTIR imaging, SEM, as well as LSM analysis. Release experiments were conducted to investigate the release behavior of the essential oils from their respective lignin and PLGA carrier materials. The study found that lignin nanoparticles were more effective at trapping and retaining essential oils than PLGA nanoparticles, despite having larger average particle diameters and a more uneven particle size distribution. An analysis of the lignin coatings showed that they formed a uniform layer that covered most of the surface pores. PLGA nanoparticles formed a film-like layer on the cell walls, and after leaching, larger areas of native wood were evident on the wood samples treated with PLGA NPs compared to the ones coated with lignin NPs. The loading capacity and efficiency varied with the type of essential oil, while the release behaviors were similar between the two essential oil types applied in this study. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Green Technologies for Preparation and Application of Wood Composites)
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19 pages, 4760 KiB  
Article
Quality Control of Thermally Modified Western Hemlock Wood Using Near-Infrared Spectroscopy and Explainable Machine Learning
by Vahid Nasir, Laurence Schimleck, Farshid Abdoli, Maria Rashidi, Farrokh Sassani and Stavros Avramidis
Polymers 2023, 15(20), 4147; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15204147 - 19 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1082
Abstract
The quality control of thermally modified wood and identifying heat treatment intensity using nondestructive testing methods are critical tasks. This study used near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and machine learning modeling to classify thermally modified wood. NIR spectra were collected from the surfaces of untreated [...] Read more.
The quality control of thermally modified wood and identifying heat treatment intensity using nondestructive testing methods are critical tasks. This study used near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and machine learning modeling to classify thermally modified wood. NIR spectra were collected from the surfaces of untreated and thermally treated (at 170 °C, 212 °C, and 230 °C) western hemlock samples. An explainable machine learning approach was practiced using a TreeNet gradient boosting machine. No dimensionality reduction was performed to better explain the feature ranking results obtained from the model and provide insight into the critical wavelengths contributing to the performance of classification models. NIR spectra in the ranges of 1100–2500 nm, 1400–2500 nm, and 1700–2500 nm were fed into the TreeNet model, which resulted in classification accuracy values (test data) of 94.35%, 89.29%, and 84.52%, respectively. Feature ranking analysis revealed that when using the range of 1100–2500 nm, the changes in wood color resulted in the highest variation in NIR reflectance amongst treatments. As a result, associated features were given higher importance by TreeNet. Limiting the wavelength range increased the significance of features related to water or wood chemistry; however, these predictive models were not as accurate as the one benefiting from the impact of wood color change on the NIR spectra. The developed framework could be applied to different applications in which NIR spectra are used for wood characterization and quality control to provide improved insights into selected NIR wavelengths when developing a machine learning model. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Green Technologies for Preparation and Application of Wood Composites)
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10 pages, 1569 KiB  
Article
Investigating the Effects of Al2O3 Microparticles on Wood Waste OSBs: A Study on Physical, Mechanical, and Durability Performance
by Wanley Eduardo Lopes Junior, Matheus Roberto Cabral, André Luis Christoforo, Cristiane Inácio de Campos and Juliano Fiorelli
Polymers 2023, 15(12), 2652; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15122652 - 12 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1031
Abstract
The development of new materials for the construction sector is a global trend, and products that use by-products in their composition and have also incorporated technology are commercially competitive. Microparticles have large surface areas and can modify the microstructure of materials, positively affecting [...] Read more.
The development of new materials for the construction sector is a global trend, and products that use by-products in their composition and have also incorporated technology are commercially competitive. Microparticles have large surface areas and can modify the microstructure of materials, positively affecting their physical and mechanical properties. In this context, this study aims to investigate the effect of incorporating aluminium oxide (Al2O3) microparticles on the physical and mechanical properties of oriented strand boards (OSBs) made from reforested residual balsa and castor oil polyurethane resin and to evaluate their durability performance under accelerated aging conditions. The OSBs were produced on a laboratory scale with a density of 650 kg/m3, strand-type particles measuring 90 × 25 × 1 mm3, using castor oil-based polyurethane resin (13%) and Al2O3 microparticle content ranging from 1% to 3% of the resin mass. The physical and mechanical properties of the OSBs were determined following the EN-300:2002 recommendations. The results obtained indicated that the OSBs with 2% Al2O3 presented thickness swelling significantly lower (at the 5% significance level) after being subjected to accelerated aging and internal bonding of the particles higher than the values obtained for the references, evidencing the positive effect of including Al2O3 microparticles in balsa OSBs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Green Technologies for Preparation and Application of Wood Composites)
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