Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
8.0
4.7
Journals
Polymers
Special Issues
Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass
share announcement

Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 September 2023) | Viewed by 17513

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Aleksandr S. Kazachenko

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Organic and Analytical Chemistry, Institute of Nonferrous Metals and Materials Science, Siberian Federal University, pr. Svobodny 79, 660041 Krasnoyarsk, Russia
2. Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology SB RAS, Federal Research Center "Krasnoyarsk Science Center SB RAS", Akademgorodok, 50/24, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Interests: nature polymer chemistry; catalytic conversion of native and isolated lignin; hydrogenation of lignocellulosic biomass; synthesis of new derivatives of natural substances; methods of alkylation and sulfation of polysaccharides and lignin
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Yuriy N. Malyar

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology SB RAS, Federal Research Center "Krasnoyarsk Science Center SB RAS", Akademgorodok, 50/24, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Interests: chemical reaction engineering; heterogeneous catalysis and conversion of renewable resources and waste; catalytic fractionation of woody biomass in an oxidizing environment to produce purified hemicellulose; chemical modification of hemicelluloses
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Natural biomass is a practically inexhaustible resource for obtaining valuable useful components. Plant biomass consists of three main components: lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose. Currently, research is being actively conducted on the production of natural polymers by both catalytic and non-catalytic methods. Various extraction methods have been used to obtain hemicelluloses, including peroxide delignification, among others. With this method, destruction and transition to a solution of lignin are observed, and cellulose and hemicelluloses are also obtained. For peroxide delignification, catalysts have been used, including sulfuric acid, titanium dioxide, manganese sulfate, etc.

Among the methods for obtaining lignin, environmentally safer methods of organo-solvent pulping have found application. This process uses organic solvents (ethanol, acetone, dioxane, etc.), as well as their mixtures with water. This method has a number of advantages in comparison with traditional methods (sulfate cooking, etc.).

In addition, an important area of research is the development, production and study of new derivatives of natural polymers. For example, the functionalization of natural polymers with sulfate groups can lead to their anticoagulant and hypolipidic activity. On the other hand, the modification of polysaccharides with carboxyl groups can increase their antioxidant activity.

Recently, the number of unique studies on obtaining new modified derivative components of plant biomass has increased. Thanks to their wide range of properties, these derivatives can be used in many areas, ranging from medicine and pharmacology to construction and the food industry.

It should be noted that, along with experimental methods for studying natural polymers, theoretical methods are also being actively developed. Using these methods, it is possible to predict a number of the physicochemical properties of new materials in order to study the patterns and synthetic pathways of individual components. Reviews on the isolation and modification of biomass polymers are also welcome in this Special Issue. At the same time, discussion of new areas of application, market prospects of biomass polymers and their derivatives is welcome.

Dr. Aleksandr S. Kazachenko
Dr. Yuriy N. Malyar
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

  • biomass polymers
  • new materials from biomass
  • hemicelluloses
  • cellulose
  • lignin
  • prospects for the development of the market of catalysts for the production of chemicals
  • characterization of polymer materials
  • ecology of biomass processing
  • natural polymer modification
  • conversion of biomass and its components
  • calculations of polymer materials
  • pyrolysis of plant components
  • depolymerization of natural polymers

Published Papers (6 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

15 pages, 2839 KiB  
Article
Efficient and Green Isolation of Keratin from Poultry Feathers by Subcritical Water
by Mojca Škerget, Maja Čolnik, Lidija Fras Zemljič, Lidija Gradišnik, Tanja Živković Semren, Blanka Tariba Lovaković and Uroš Maver
Polymers 2023, 15(12), 2658; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15122658 - 12 Jun 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3376
Abstract
The isolation of keratin from poultry feathers using subcritical water was studied in a batch reactor at temperatures (120–250 °C) and reaction times (5–75 min). The hydrolyzed product was characterized by FTIR and elemental analysis, while the molecular weight of the isolated product [...] Read more.
The isolation of keratin from poultry feathers using subcritical water was studied in a batch reactor at temperatures (120–250 °C) and reaction times (5–75 min). The hydrolyzed product was characterized by FTIR and elemental analysis, while the molecular weight of the isolated product was determined by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis. To determine whether disulfide bond cleavage was followed by depolymerization of protein molecules to amino acids, the concentration of 27 amino acids in the hydrolysate was analyzed by GC/MS. The optimal operating parameters for obtaining a high molecular weight protein hydrolysate from poultry feathers were 180 °C and 60 min. The molecular weight of the protein hydrolysate obtained under optimal conditions ranged from 4.5 to 12 kDa, and the content of amino acids in the dried product was low (2.53% w/w). Elemental and FTIR analyses of unprocessed feathers and dried hydrolysate obtained under optimal conditions showed no significant differences in protein content and structure. Obtained hydrolysate is a colloidal solution with a tendency for particle agglomeration. Finally, a positive influence on skin fibroblast viability was observed for the hydrolysate obtained under optimal processing conditions for concentrations below 6.25 mg/mL, which makes the product interesting for various biomedical applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

15 pages, 1851 KiB  
Article
Sulfation of Birch Wood Microcrystalline Cellulose with Sulfamic Acid Using Ion-Exchange Resins as Catalysts
by Aleksandr S. Kazachenko, Natalia Yu. Vasilieva, Yaroslava D. Berezhnaya, Olga Yu. Fetisova, Valentina S. Borovkova, Yuriy N. Malyar, Irina G. Sudakova, Valentin V. Sychev, Noureddine Issaoui, Maxim A. Lutoshkin and Anton A. Karacharov
Polymers 2023, 15(5), 1116; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15051116 - 23 Feb 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1945
Abstract
Cellulose sulfates are important biologically active substances with a wide range of useful properties. The development of new methods for the production of cellulose sulfates is an urgent task. In this work, we investigated ion-exchange resins as catalysts for the sulfation of cellulose [...] Read more.
Cellulose sulfates are important biologically active substances with a wide range of useful properties. The development of new methods for the production of cellulose sulfates is an urgent task. In this work, we investigated ion-exchange resins as catalysts for the sulfation of cellulose with sulfamic acid. It has been shown that water-insoluble sulfated reaction products are formed in high yield in the presence of anion exchangers, while water-soluble products are formed in the presence of cation exchangers. The most effective catalyst is Amberlite IR 120. According to gel permeation chromatography, it was shown that the samples sulfated in the presence of the catalysts KU-2-8, Purolit s390 plus, and AN-31 SO42− underwent the greatest degradation. The molecular weight destribution profiles of these samples are noticeably shifted to the left towards low-molecular-weight compounds with an increase in fractions in the regions Mw ~2.100 g/mol and ~3.500 g/mol, indicating the growth of microcrystalline cellulose depolymerization products. The introduction of a sulfate group into the cellulose molecule is confirmed using FTIR spectroscopy by the appearance of absorption bands at 1245–1252 cm−1 and 800–809 cm−1, which correspond to the vibrations of the sulfate group. According to X-ray diffraction data, amorphization of the crystalline structure of cellulose is observed during sulfation. Thermal analysis has shown that with an increase in the content of sulfate groups in cellulose derivatives, thermal stability decreases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 3693 KiB  
Article
Effects of Lipase and Xylanase Pretreatment on the Structure and Pulping Properties of Wheat Straw
by Qianqian Jia, Jiachuan Chen, Guihua Yang, Kefeng Liu, Yueying Wang and Kai Zhang
Polymers 2022, 14(23), 5129; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14235129 - 25 Nov 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1656
Abstract
Based on the reduction of environmental pollution, a biological enzyme assisted alkali-oxygen pulping method was explored to improve the delignification efficiency and fiber accessibility of wheat straw and improve the properties of wheat straw pulp. In this paper, lipase and xylanase were used [...] Read more.
Based on the reduction of environmental pollution, a biological enzyme assisted alkali-oxygen pulping method was explored to improve the delignification efficiency and fiber accessibility of wheat straw and improve the properties of wheat straw pulp. In this paper, lipase and xylanase were used to pretreat wheat straw and the effects of different enzyme types and enzyme dosage on the microstructure and pulp properties of wheat straw were investigated and experimented. The results showed that the lipase can remove fat and wax on the surface of wheat straw, while xylanase degraded the hemicellulose components, such as xylan, of wheat straw fiber, destroyed the structure of the lignin-carbohydrate complex, increasing lignin removal as a result and enhancing the impregnating, diffusion and penetration of alkali. Compared with wheat straw without enzyme pretreatment, the skeleton of wheat straw pretreated by enzyme became looser, the internal cavity appeared and the wall cavity became thin and transparent. The fines decreased obviously and the length of fibers increased. After combined pretreatment with lipase (15 U·g−1) and xylanase (15 U·g−1), the pulping performance of wheat straw was improved and the tensile index (97.37 N·m·g−1), brightness (40.9% ISO) and yield (58.10%) of the pulp increased by 12.9%, 19.9% and 9.9%, respectively. It can be seen that enzyme pretreatment is a green and effective approach to improving the alkali-oxygen pulping performance of wheat straw. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 2824 KiB  
Article
Comparative Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Sustainable Epoxy Polymer Networks Derived from Linseed Oil
by Madalina Ioana Necolau, Celina Maria Damian, Elena Olaret, Horia Iovu and Brindusa Balanuca
Polymers 2022, 14(19), 4212; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14194212 - 8 Oct 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1802
Abstract
Considering its great industrial potential, epoxidized linseed oil (ELO) was crosslinked with different agents, both natural and synthetic: citric acid (CA, in the presence of water—W, or tetrahydrofuran—THF, as activator molecules) and Jeffamine D230, respectively, resulting bio-based polymeric matrices, studied further, comparatively, in [...] Read more.
Considering its great industrial potential, epoxidized linseed oil (ELO) was crosslinked with different agents, both natural and synthetic: citric acid (CA, in the presence of water—W, or tetrahydrofuran—THF, as activator molecules) and Jeffamine D230, respectively, resulting bio-based polymeric matrices, studied further, comparatively, in terms of their properties, through different methods. Thermal curing parameters were established by means of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). Fourier transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and DSC were used to identify the reactivity of each ELO-based formulation, discussing the influence of the employed curing systems under the conversion of the epoxy rings. Then, the obtained bio-based materials were characterized by different methods, establishing the structure–properties relation. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed higher thermal stability for the ELO_CA material when THF was used as an activator. Moreover, a higher glass transition temperature (Tg) with ~12 °C was registered for this material when compared with the one that resulted through the crosslinking of ELO with D230 conventional amine. Other important features, such as crosslink density, storage modulus, mechanical features, and water affinity, were discussed. Under the loop of a comprehensive approach, a set of remarkable properties were obtained for ELO_CA_THF material when compared with the one resulting from the crosslinking of ELO with the synthetic Jeffamine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 40268 KiB  
Article
Biophysical Characterization and Cytocompatibility of Cellulose Cryogels Reinforced with Chitin Nanowhiskers
by Irina V. Tyshkunova, Iosif V. Gofman, Dmitry G. Chukhchin, Alexey V. Malkov, Alexander I. Mishanin, Alexey S. Golovkin, Ekaterina N. Pavlova, Daria N. Poshina and Yury A. Skorik
Polymers 2022, 14(13), 2694; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14132694 - 30 Jun 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1824
Abstract
Polysaccharide-based cryogels are promising materials for producing scaffolds in tissue engineering. In this work, we obtained ultralight (0.046–0.162 g/cm3) and highly porous (88.2–96.7%) cryogels with a complex hierarchical morphology by dissolving cellulose in phosphoric acid, with subsequent regeneration and freeze-drying. The [...] Read more.
Polysaccharide-based cryogels are promising materials for producing scaffolds in tissue engineering. In this work, we obtained ultralight (0.046–0.162 g/cm3) and highly porous (88.2–96.7%) cryogels with a complex hierarchical morphology by dissolving cellulose in phosphoric acid, with subsequent regeneration and freeze-drying. The effect of the cellulose dissolution temperature on phosphoric acid and the effect of the freezing time of cellulose hydrogels on the structure and properties of the obtained cryogels were studied. It has been shown that prolonged freezing leads to the formation of denser and stronger cryogels with a network structure. The incorporation of chitin nanowhiskers led to a threefold increase in the strength of the cellulose cryogels. The X-ray diffraction method showed that the regenerated cellulose was mostly amorphous, with a crystallinity of 26.8–28.4% in the structure of cellulose II. Cellulose cryogels with chitin nanowhiskers demonstrated better biocompatibility with mesenchymal stem cells compared to the normal cellulose cryogels. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

31 pages, 4781 KiB  
Review
Micro-/Nano-Carboxymethyl Cellulose as a Promising Biopolymer with Prospects in the Agriculture Sector: A Review
by Roohallah Saberi Riseh, Mozhgan Gholizadeh Vazvani, Mohadeseh Hassanisaadi and Yury A. Skorik
Polymers 2023, 15(2), 440; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15020440 - 13 Jan 2023
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 5967
Abstract
The increase in the population rate has increased the demand for safe and quality food products. However, the current agricultural system faces many challenges in producing vegetables and fruits. Indiscriminate use of pesticides and fertilizers, deficiency of water resources, short shelf life of [...] Read more.
The increase in the population rate has increased the demand for safe and quality food products. However, the current agricultural system faces many challenges in producing vegetables and fruits. Indiscriminate use of pesticides and fertilizers, deficiency of water resources, short shelf life of products postharvest, and nontargeted delivery of agrochemicals are the main challenges. In this regard, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) is one of the most promising materials in the agriculture sector for minimizing these challenges due to its mechanical strength, viscosity, wide availability, and edibility properties. CMC also has high water absorbency; therefore, it can be used for water deficiency (as superabsorbent hydrogels). Due to the many hydroxyl groups on its surface, this substance has high efficacy in removing pollutants, such as pesticides and heavy metals. Enriching CMC coatings with additional substances, such as antimicrobial, antibrowning, antioxidant, and antisoftening materials, can provide further novel formulations with unique advantages. In addition, the encapsulation of bioactive materials or pesticides provides a targeted delivery system. This review presents a comprehensive overview of the use of CMC in agriculture and its applications for preserving fruit and vegetable quality, remediating agricultural pollution, preserving water sources, and encapsulating bioactive molecules for targeted delivery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Natural Polymers from Biomass)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-6
Back to TopTop