scholarly journals Isolation of cellulose microfibrils - An enzymatic approach

BioResources ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 176-188 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sreekumar Janardhnan ◽  
Mohini M. Sain

Isolation methods and applications of cellulose microfibrils are expanding rapidly due to environmental benefits and specific strength properties, especially in bio-composite science. In this research, we have success-fully developed and explored a novel bio-pretreatment for wood fibre that can substantially improve the microfibril yield, in comparison to current techniques used to isolate cellulose microfibrils. Microfibrils currently are isolated in the laboratory through a combination of high shear refining and cryocrushing. A high energy requirement of these procedures is hampering momentum in the direction of microfibril isolation on a sufficiently large scale to suit potential applications. Any attempt to loosen up the microfibrils by either complete or partial destruction of the hydrogen bonds before the mechanical process would be a step forward in the quest for economical isolation of cellulose microfibrils. Bleached kraft pulp was treated with OS1, a fungus isolated from Dutch Elm trees infected with Dutch elm disease, under different treatment conditions. The percentage yield of cellulose microfibrils, based on their diameter, showed a significant shift towards a lower diameter range after the high shear refining, compared to the yield of cellulose microfibrils from untreated fibres. The overall yield of cellulose microfibrils from the treated fibres did not show any sizeable decrease.

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sreekumar Janardhnan ◽  
Mohini Sain

The use of cellulose nanofibres as high-strength reinforcement in nano-biocomposites is very enthusiastically being explored due to their biodegradability, renewability, and high specific strength properties. Cellulose, through a regular network of inter- and intramolecular hydrogen bonds, is organized into perfect stereoregular configuration called microfibrils which further aggregate to different levels to form the fibre. Intermolecular hydrogen bonding at various levels, especially at the elementary level, is the major binding force that one need to overcome to reverse engineer these fibres into their microfibrillar level. This paper briefly describes a novel enzymatic fibre pretreatment developed to facilitate the isolation of cellulose microfibrils and explores effectiveness of biotreatment on the intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen bonding in the fiber. Bleached Kraft Softwood Pulp was treated with a fungus (OS1) isolated from elm tree infected with Dutch elm disease. Cellulose microfibrils were isolated from these treated fibers by high-shear refining. The % yield of nanofibres and their diameter distribution (<50 nm) isolated from the bio-treated fibers indicated a substantial increase compared to those isolated from untreated fibers. FT-IR spectral analysis indicated a reduction in the density of intermolecular and intramolecular hydrogen bonding within the fiber. X-ray spectrometry indicated a reduction in the crystallinity. Hydrogen bond-specific enzyme and its application in the isolation of new generation cellulose nano-fibers can be a huge leap forward in the field of nano-biocomposites.


2016 ◽  
Vol 701 ◽  
pp. 255-259
Author(s):  
Kok Chung Chong ◽  
Soon Onn Lai ◽  
Hui San Thiam ◽  
Woei Jye Lau

The oxygen air production are generally be achieved by pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and cryogenic distillation. Both of the techniques are able to produce high purity oxygen level which is more than 95% with a production volume of 20 – 300 tons per day. These techniques however required high energy consumption and with the rising cost of energy, membrane separation is a good option as it require relatively low energy requirement. Membrane separation technique is an emerging technique which garners the interest from academia and industry from last decade as an alternative method to produce oxygen enriched air. To date, the commercially available and research institution self-fabricated polymeric membrane are unable to produce an economically viable membrane with high permeability and selectivity in a large scale production relative to the conventional method. In this works, the progress of the application of polymeric in O2/N2 separation which including the recent developed of self fabricated polymeric membrane and the aspect of operation parameter is discussed. Finally, the paper also intends to present a brief overview of the development of membrane separation technique in O2/N2 separation in addressing the strategies and improvement in the fulfillment of industrial application interest.


TAPPI Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 653-664
Author(s):  
IGNACIO DE SAN PIO ◽  
KLAS G. JOHANSSON ◽  
PAUL KROCHAK

Different strategies aimed at reducing the negative impact of fillers on paper strength have been the objective of many studies during the past few decades. Some new strategies have even been patented or commercialized, yet a complete study on the behavior of the filler flocs and their effect on retention, drainage, and formation has not been found in literature. This type of research on fillers is often limited by difficulties in simulating high levels of shear at laboratory scale similar to those at mill scale. To address this challenge, a combination of techniques was used to compare preflocculation (i.e., filler is flocculated before addition to the pulp) with coflocculation strategies (i.e., filler is mixed with a binder and flocculated before addition to the pulp). The effect on filler and fiber flocs size was studied in a pilot flow loop using focal beam reflectance measurement (FBRM) and image analysis. Flocs obtained with cationic polyacrylamide (CPAM) and bentonite were shown to have similar shear resistance with both strategies, whereas cationic starch (CS) was clearly more advantageous when coflocculation strategy was used. The effect of flocculation strategy on drainage rate, STFI formation, ash retention, and standard strength properties was measured. Coflocculation of filler with CPAM plus bentonite or CS showed promising results and produced sheets with high strength but had a negative impact on wire dewatering, opening a door for further optimization.


TAPPI Journal ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 731-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
KARITA KINNUNEN-RAUDASKOSKI ◽  
KRISTIAN SALMINEN ◽  
JANI LEHMONEN ◽  
TUOMO HJELT

Production cost savings by lowering basis weight has been a trend in papermaking. The strategy has been to decrease the amount of softwood kraft pulp and increase use of fillers and recycled fibers. These changes have a tendency to lower strength properties of both the wet and dry web. To compensate for the strength loss in the paper, a greater quantity of strength additives is often required, either dosed at the wet end or applied to the wet web by spray. In this pilot-scale study, it was shown how strength additives can be effectively applied with foam-based application technology. The technology can simultaneously increase dryness after wet pressing and enhance dry and wet web strength properties. Foam application of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH), carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), guar gum, starch, and cellulose microfibrils (CMF) increased web dryness after wet pressing up to 5.2%-units compared to the reference sample. The enhanced dewatering with starch, guar gum, and CMF was detected with a bulk increase. Additionally, a significant increase in z-directional tensile strength of dry web and and in-plane tensile strength properties of wet web was obtained. Based on the results, foam application technology can be a very useful technology for several applications in the paper industry.


2015 ◽  
Vol 51 (91) ◽  
pp. 16381-16384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuelong Xin ◽  
Liya Qi ◽  
Yiwei Zhang ◽  
Zicheng Zuo ◽  
Henghui Zhou ◽  
...  

A novel organic solvent-assisted freeze-drying pathway, which can effectively protect and uniformly distribute active particles, is developed to fabricate a free-standing Li2MnO3·LiNi1/3Co1/3Mn1/3O2 (LR)/rGO electrode on a large scale.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 386-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahmood S. Jameel ◽  
Azlan Abdul Aziz ◽  
Mohammed Ali Dheyab

AbstractPlatinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) have attracted interest in catalysis and biomedical applications due to their unique structural, optical, and catalytic properties. However, the conventional synthesis of Pt NPs using the chemical and physical methods is constrained by the use of harmful and costly chemicals, intricate preparation requirement, and high energy utilization. Hence, this review emphasizes on the green synthesis of Pt NPs using plant extracts as an alternative approach due to its simplicity, convenience, inexpensiveness, easy scalability, low energy requirement, environmental friendliness, and minimum usage of hazardous materials and maximized efficiency of the synthesis process. The underlying complex processes that cover the green synthesis (biosynthesis) of Pt NPs were reviewed. This review affirms the effects of different critical parameters (pH, reaction temperature, reaction time, and biomass dosage) on the size and shape of the synthesized Pt NPs. For instance, the average particle size of Pt NPs was reported to decrease with increasing pH, reaction temperature, and concentration of plant extract.


Author(s):  
Zhiqiang Luo ◽  
Silin Zheng ◽  
Shuo Zhao ◽  
Xin Jiao ◽  
Zongshuai Gong ◽  
...  

Benzoquinone with high theoretical capacity is anchored on N-plasma engraved porous carbon as a desirable cathode for rechargeable aqueous Zn-ion batteries. Such batteries display tremendous potential in large-scale energy storage applications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenz T. Keyßer ◽  
Manfred Lenzen

Abstract1.5  °C scenarios reported by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) rely on combinations of controversial negative emissions and unprecedented technological change, while assuming continued growth in gross domestic product (GDP). Thus far, the integrated assessment modelling community and the IPCC have neglected to consider degrowth scenarios, where economic output declines due to stringent climate mitigation. Hence, their potential to avoid reliance on negative emissions and speculative rates of technological change remains unexplored. As a first step to address this gap, this paper compares 1.5  °C degrowth scenarios with IPCC archetype scenarios, using a simplified quantitative representation of the fuel-energy-emissions nexus. Here we find that the degrowth scenarios minimize many key risks for feasibility and sustainability compared to technology-driven pathways, such as the reliance on high energy-GDP decoupling, large-scale carbon dioxide removal and large-scale and high-speed renewable energy transformation. However, substantial challenges remain regarding political feasibility. Nevertheless, degrowth pathways should be thoroughly considered.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oskar Englund ◽  
Pål Börjesson ◽  
Blas Mola-Yudego ◽  
Göran Berndes ◽  
Ioannis Dimitriou ◽  
...  

AbstractWithin the scope of the new Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, in coherence with other EU policies, new incentives are developed for farmers to deploy practices that are beneficial for climate, water, soil, air, and biodiversity. Such practices include establishment of multifunctional biomass production systems, designed to reduce environmental impacts while providing biomass for food, feed, bioenergy, and other biobased products. Here, we model three scenarios of large-scale deployment for two such systems, riparian buffers and windbreaks, across over 81,000 landscapes in Europe, and quantify the corresponding areas, biomass output, and environmental benefits. The results show that these systems can effectively reduce nitrogen emissions to water and soil loss by wind erosion, while simultaneously providing substantial environmental co-benefits, having limited negative effects on current agricultural production. This kind of beneficial land-use change using strategic perennialization is important for meeting environmental objectives while advancing towards a sustainable bioeconomy.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen Li ◽  
Xiong Zhang ◽  
Kai Wang ◽  
Xianzhong Sun ◽  
Yanan Xu ◽  
...  

AbstractLithium-ion capacitors are envisaged as promising energy-storage devices to simultaneously achieve a large energy density and high-power output at quick charge and discharge rates. However, the mismatched kinetics between capacitive cathodes and faradaic anodes still hinder their practical application for high-power purposes. To tackle this problem, the electron and ion transport of both electrodes should be substantially improved by targeted structural design and controllable chemical doping. Herein, nitrogen-enriched graphene frameworks are prepared via a large-scale and ultrafast magnesiothermic combustion synthesis using CO2 and melamine as precursors, which exhibit a crosslinked porous structure, abundant functional groups and high electrical conductivity (10524 S m−1). The material essentially delivers upgraded kinetics due to enhanced ion diffusion and electron transport. Excellent capacities of 1361 mA h g−1 and 827 mA h g−1 can be achieved at current densities of 0.1 A g−1 and 3 A g−1, respectively, demonstrating its outstanding lithium storage performance at both low and high rates. Moreover, the lithium-ion capacitor based on these nitrogen-enriched graphene frameworks displays a high energy density of 151 Wh kg−1, and still retains 86 Wh kg−1 even at an ultrahigh power output of 49 kW kg−1. This study reveals an effective pathway to achieve synergistic kinetics in carbon electrode materials for achieving high-power lithium-ion capacitors.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document