Green Nanotechnology of Cell Wall Swelling for Nanostructured Transparent Wood of High Optical Performance.

Transparent wood composites provide new functionalities through active additives distributed at the nanoscale. Scalable nanotechnology includes processing where nanoparticles and molecules are brought into the dense wood cell wall. A novel cell wall swelling step through green chemistry is therefore investigated.

Interconnecting EDOT-Based Polymers with Native Lignin toward Enhanced Charge Storage in Conductive Wood.

The 3D micro- and nanostructure of wood has extensively been employed as a template for cost-effective and renewable electronic technologies. However, other electroactive components, in particular native lignin, have been overlooked due to the absence of an approach that allows access of the lignin through the cell wall. In this study, we introduce an approach that focuses on establishing conjugated-polymer-based electrical connections at various length scales within the wood structure, aiming to leverage the charge storage capacity of native lignin in wood-based energy storage electrodes.

Synchronized ultrasonography and electromyography signals detection enabled by nanocellulose based ultrasound transparent electrodes.

Accurate evaluation of electrophysiological and morphological characteristics of the skeletal muscles is critical to establish a comprehensive assessment of the human neuromusculoskeletal function in vivo. However, current technological challenges lie in unsynchronized and unparallel operation of separate acquisition systems such as surface electromyography (sEMG) and ultrasonography. Key problem is the lack of ultrasound transparency of current electrophysiological electrodes.

Iron-Catalyzed Laser-Induced Graphitization - Multiscale Analysis of the Structural Evolution and Underlying Mechanism.

The transition to sustainable materials and eco-efficient processes in commercial electronics is a driving force in developing green electronics. Iron-catalyzed laser-induced graphitization (IC-LIG) has been demonstrated as a promising approach for rendering biomaterials electrically conductive. To optimize the IC-LIG process and fully exploit its potential for future green electronics, it is crucial to gain deeper insights into its catalyzation mechanism and structural evolution.

Structure-properties relationships of defined CNF single-networks crosslinked by telechelic PEGs.

The high structural anisotropy and colloidal stability of cellulose nanofibrils' enable the creation of self-standing fibrillar hydrogel networks at very low solid contents. Adding methacrylate moieties on the surface of TEMPO oxidized CNFs allows the formation of more robust covalently crosslinked networks by free radical polymerization of acrylic monomers, exploiting the mechanical properties of these networks more efficiently. This technique yields strong and elastic networks but with an undefined network structure.

Metallic Wood through Deep-Cell-Wall Metallization: Synthesis and Applications.

Metallic wood combines the unique structural benefits of wood and the properties of metals and is thus promising for applications ranging from heat transfer to electromagnetic shielding to energy conversion. However, achieving metallic wood with full use of wood structural benefits such as anisotropy and multiscale porosity is challenging. A key reason is the limited mass transfer in bulk wood where fibers have closed ends.

Gradience Free Nanoinsertion of FeO into Wood for Enhanced Hydrovoltaic Energy Harvesting.

Hydrovoltaic energy harvesting offers the potential to utilize enormous water energy for sustainable energy systems. Here, we report the utilization and tailoring of an intrinsic anisotropic 3D continuous microchannel structure from native wood for efficient hydrovoltaic energy harvesting by FeO nanoparticle insertion. Acetone-assisted precursor infiltration ensures the homogenous distribution of Fe ions for gradience-free FeO nanoparticle formation in wood.

Strong, Shape-Memory Lignocellulosic Aerogel Wood Cell Wall Nanoscale Reassembly.

Polymer shape-memory aerogels (PSMAs) are prospects in various fields of application ranging from aerospace to biomedicine, as advanced thermal insulators, actuators, or sensors. However, the fabrication of PSMAs with good mechanical performance is challenging and is currently dominated by fossil-based polymers. In this work, strong, shape-memory bio-aerogels with high specific surface areas (up to 220 m/g) and low radial thermal conductivity (0.

Functionalized Wood Veneers as Vibration Sensors: Exploring Wood Piezoelectricity and Hierarchical Structure Effects.

Functional wood materials often rely on active additives due to the weak piezoelectric response of wood itself. Here, we chemically modify wood to form functionalized, eco-friendly wood veneer for self-powered vibration sensors. Only the piezoelectricity of the cellulose microfibrils is used, where the drastic improvement comes only from molecular and nanoscale wood structure tuning.

Nanostructurally Controllable Strong Wood Aerogel toward Efficient Thermal Insulation.

Eco-friendly materials with superior thermal insulation and mechanical properties are desirable for improved energy- and space-efficiency in buildings. Cellulose aerogels with structural anisotropy could fulfill these requirements, but complex processing and high energy demand are challenges for scaling up. Here we propose a scalable, nonadditive, top-down fabrication of strong anisotropic aerogels directly from wood with excellent, near isotropic thermal insulation functions.

Facile Processing of Transparent Wood Nanocomposites with Structural Color from Plasmonic Nanoparticles.

Wood is an eco-friendly and abundant substrate and a candidate for functionalization by large-scale nanotechnologies. Infiltration of nanoparticles into wood, however, is hampered by the hierarchically structured and interconnected fibers in wood. In this work, delignified wood is impregnated with gold and silver salts, which are reduced in situ to plasmonic nanoparticles via microwave-assisted synthesis.

Top-Down Approach Making Anisotropic Cellulose Aerogels as Universal Substrates for Multifunctionalization.

Highly porous, strong aerogels with anisotropic structural properties are of great interest for multifunctional materials for applications including insulators in buildings, filters for oil cleanup, electrical storage devices, . Contemporary aerogels are mostly extracted from fossil resources and synthesized from bottom-up techniques, often requiring additional strategies to obtain high anisotropy. In this work, a universal approach to prepare porous, strong, anisotropic aerogels is presented through exploiting the natural hierarchical and anisotropic structure of wood.