Isolation and Fractionation of the Tobacco Stalk Lignin for Customized Value-Added Utilization

The value-added utilization of tobacco stalk lignin is the key to the development of tobacco stalk resources. However, the serious heterogeneity is the bottleneck for making full use of tobacco stalk lignin. Based on this, lignin was separated from tobacco stalk through hydrothermal assisted dilute alkali pretreatment. Subsequently, the tobacco stalk alkaline lignin was fractionated into five uniform lignin components by sequential solvent fractionation. Advanced spectral technologies (FT-IR, NMR, and GPC) were used to reveal the effects of hydrothermal assisted dilute alkali pretreatment and solvent fractionation on the structural features of tobacco stalk lignin. The lignin fractions extracted with n-butanol and ethanol had low molecular weight and high phenolic hydroxyl content, thus exhibiting superior chemical reactivity and antioxidant capacity. By contrast, the lignin fraction extracted with dioxane had high molecular weight and low reactivity, nevertheless, the high residual carbon rate made it suitable as a precursor for preparing carbon materials. In general, hydrothermal assisted dilute alkali pretreatment was proved to be an efficient method to separate lignin from tobacco stalk, and the application of sequential solvent fractionation to prepare lignin fractions with homogeneous structural features has specific application prospect.

Tobacco stalk lignocellulosic nanofibers characterization for pharmaceutical applications

Lignocellulosic nanofibers derived from tobacco stalk can have countless applications in polymers composites, textile, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Thus, it is important to evaluate biomass characteristics such as the presence of nicotine. In this study, nanofibers were obtained by mechanical fibrillation while cellulose content (0.5 and 2.0%) and drying methods were varied. Nanofibers were characterized by thin layer chromatography, 1H NMR, morphological analysis, α-cellulose content, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and thermal analysis. Results demonstrate the absence of nicotine in tobacco stalk. The grinding mill process was efficient to produce by freeze-drying, nanofibers with fiber’s mean diameter of ~30 nm. Solid concentrations can influence the diameter of obtained fibers. Thermal stability increased and crystallinity decreased when alkali treatment was applied. The characterization techniques applied enable the evaluation of tobacco stalk and expanded its application to pharmaceutics.

Tobacco stalk-derived carbon prepared by one-step molten salt carbonization for supercapacitor

High-performance capacitive carbon materials, derived from tobacco stalk, were prepared by a one-step carbonization process in molten carbonate. Owing to the high specific surface area (SSA) (1165.9 m2 g[Formula: see text] and heteroatom doping by the activation effect of molten salt medium for 3 h, the as-obtained carbon material with hierarchically porous structure exhibits an ideal capacitive property with delivering specific capacitances of 219.8, 188.0, 176.4, and 168.4 F g[Formula: see text] at 0.2, 0.5, 1, and 2 A g[Formula: see text], respectively, acceptable rate performance with 76.6% capacitance retention in range of 0.2–2 A g[Formula: see text], and good cyclic stability with 93% capacitance retention after 3000 charge–discharge cycles at 1 A g[Formula: see text], as well as energy density of 30.5 Wh kg[Formula: see text] at 0.2 A g[Formula: see text] and power density of 989.6 W kg[Formula: see text] at 2 A g[Formula: see text] in 1 mol L[Formula: see text] H2SO4 aqueous solution using a three-electrode system. Moreover, it delivers specific capacitances of 143.3, 140.2, 137.4, and 134.3 F g[Formula: see text] at 0.2, 0.5, 1, and 2 A g[Formula: see text], respectively, and excellent rate performance with 93.7% capacitance retention in range of 0.2–2 A g[Formula: see text], as well as energy density of 4.9 Wh kg[Formula: see text] at 0.2 A g[Formula: see text] and power density of 488.6 W kg[Formula: see text] at 2 A g[Formula: see text] in 6 mol L[Formula: see text] KOH aqueous solution using a symmetrical two-electrode system. The correlation between hierarchically porous structure with heteroatom doping and capacitive performance is also discussed.

Tobacco Stalk Biochar Application Improves Soil Fertility and Flue-Cured Tobacco Growth

Tobacco stalks the main agricultural waste after tobacco harvest, are generally discarded directly or returned to the field after burning. They are rarely processed into biochar, a product that could benefit soil properties. To explore the effects of applying tobacco stalk biochar on soil fertility and tobacco production, tobacco was grown at six biochar application levels (0, 3,000, 4,500, 6,000, 9,000 and 12,000 kg ha-1) in three different sites (Jianchuan, Midu and Eryuan) in Dali County, Yunnan Province. Biochar decreased soil bulk density, increased large and small soil aggregate proportion, and increased soil organic carbon and nitrogen stocks. Biochar also improved the yield and quality of tobacco leaves at all sites. Biochar rates of 3,000, 4,500 and 6,000 kg ha-1 linearly improved soil fertility and agronomic traits while application rate of biochar exceeding 9,000 kg ha-1reduced plant growth. Moreover, the optimum biochar application rates for better plant height, stem diameter, maximum leaf length and leaf width, yield, and average price differed by site. These rates were: 6,000 kg ha-1(Midu), 3,000 kg ha-1(Eryuan) and4,500 kg ha-1(Jianchuan), respectively. In conclusion, appropriate application of biochar could improve soil nutrients and contribute to tobacco growth in different soil nutrient conditions.© 2021 Friends Science Publishers