Novel Electrically Conductive Cellulose Nanocrystals with a Core-Shell Nanostructure Towards Biodegradable Electronics.

Electronic waste (e-waste) is the fastest growing waste stream and its negative impact on the environment and human health is major because of the toxicity and non-biodegradability of its constituents. For their biodegradability and nontoxicity, bio-based materials have been proposed as potential material candidates in the field of electronics. Among these, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) have many interesting properties including biodegradability, high mechanical strength, and possibility to functionalize.

Current Status of Cellulosic and Nanocellulosic Materials for Oil Spill Cleanup.

Recent developments in the application of lignocellulosic materials for oil spill removal are discussed in this review article. The types of lignocellulosic substrate material and their different chemical and physical modification strategies and basic preparation techniques are presented. The morphological features and the related separation mechanisms of the materials are summarized.

Nano-Brushes of Alcohols Grafted onto Cellulose Nanocrystals for Reinforcing Poly(Butylene Succinate): Impact of Alcohol Chain Length on Interfacial Adhesion.

Despite the many interesting properties of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), their hydrophilicity is one of the main challenges for their processing with hydrophobic polymers and matrices. To overcome this challenge, this paper describes the preparation of brush-like CNCs with tailored surface properties by grafting alcohols of different chain lengths onto their surfaces. Ethanol, 1-butanol, 1-hexanol, and 1-octanol were grafted on the CNC surface using 2,4-toluene diisocyanate (TDI) as a linker.

A Review on the Partial and Complete Dissolution and Fractionation of Wood and Lignocelluloses Using Imidazolium Ionic Liquids.

Ionic liquids have shown great potential in the last two decades as solvents, catalysts, reaction media, additives, lubricants, and in many applications such as electrochemical systems, hydrometallurgy, chromatography, CO capture, etc. As solvents, the unlimited combinations of cations and anions have given ionic liquids a remarkably wide range of solvation power covering a variety of organic and inorganic materials. Ionic liquids are also considered "green" solvents due to their negligible vapor pressure, which means no emission of volatile organic compounds.

A Review of the Surface Modification of Cellulose and Nanocellulose Using Aliphatic and Aromatic Mono- and Di-Isocyanates.

Nanocellulose has been subjected to a wide range of chemical modifications towards increasing its potential in certain fields of interest. These modifications either modulated the chemistry of the nanocellulose itself or introduced certain functional groups onto its surface, which varied from simple molecules to polymers. Among many, aliphatic and aromatic mono- and di-isocyanates are a group of chemicals that have been used for a century to modify cellulose.

On the Para/Ortho Reactivity of Isocyanate Groups during the Carbamation of Cellulose Nanocrystals Using 2,4-Toluene Diisocyanate.

2,4-toluene diisocyanate (TDI) has been commonly used to bind molecules and polymers onto the surface of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). Such a process usually involves two steps: (1) the more reactive para-isocyanates (p-NCOs) of TDI are reacted with the surface hydroxyl groups of CNCs then (2) the ortho-isocyanates (o-NCOs) are reacted with certain desired molecules. During the first reaction, an ideal para/ortho selectivity could be impossible to achieve, as o-NCOs are not fully unreactive.

Imidazole, a New Tunable Reagent for Producing Nanocellulose, Part I: Xylan-Coated CNCs and CNFs.

Imidazole is reported to be an effective reactant for the production of nanocellulose from hardwood pulp. The morphologies and surface properties of the nanocellulose can be simply tailored according to the water content in the imidazole system: with pure imidazole, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) in a yield of 10 wt % can be produced. With 25 wt % of water in imidazole, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are obtained in 20 wt % yield.

Swelling and hydrolysis kinetics of Kraft pulp fibers in aqueous 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate solutions.

1Butyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate ([Bmim]HSO4) is efficient at extracting cellulose nanocrystals from pulp fibers. To shed some light on the respective contributions of swelling and hydrolysis of pulp fibers by [Bmim]HSO4, the physical, structural and morphological characteristics of hardwood Kraft pulp fibers were monitored under various conditions of temperature, water content and time. Swelling was largely compounded by hydrolysis at the highest temperatures (120°C) as evidenced by mass loss and reduced degree of polymerization (DPn) at this temperature.

Ionic liquid-mediated technology to produce cellulose nanocrystals directly from wood.

We report for the first time the direct extraction of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) from wood by means of a 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([EMIM][OAc]) treatment. A native cellulosic product could be recovered in 44% yield with respect to wood cellulose content. The product was analyzed for morphological (TEM, AFM, XRD), chemical (FTIR, (13)C CP/MAS NMR), thermal (DSC, TGA) and surface properties (Zeta potential, contact angle).