Paper Ageing: The Effect of Paper Chemical Composition on Hydrolysis and Oxidation.

The degradation of cellulose is an important factor influencing its mechanical, optical, physical, and chemical properties and, hence, the lifetime of paper in libraries and archival collections. Regardless of the complexity of the paper material, the main chemical pathways for its degradation are hydrolysis and oxidation. This study presents an overview of the analytical techniques employed in the evaluation of the hydrolysis and oxidation processes; these techniques include size-exclusion chromatography, Fourier-transform infrared and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction.

Impact of Support (MCF, ZrO, ZSM-5) on the Efficiency of Ni Catalyst in High-Temperature Conversion of Lignocellulosic Biomass to Hydrogen-Rich Gas.

The main objective of this work was to evaluate an impact of a support on the efficiency of nickel catalysts in the high-temperature conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to hydrogen-rich gas. The most important parameters influencing catalytic performance of the catalysts were identified. The properties of three materials (ZSM-5, ZrO, and MCF (mesostructured cellular foam)) used as a support differing in surface acidity, surface area, pore structure, ability to interact with an active phase, and resistance to coking, have been studied.