Composites from renewable and sustainable resources: Challenges and innovations.

Interest in constructing composite materials from biosourced, recycled materials; waste resources; and their combinations is growing. Biocomposites have attracted the attention of automakers for the design of lightweight parts. Hybrid biocomposites made of petrochemical-based and bioresourced materials have led to technological advances in manufacturing.

Oxidative acid treatment and characterization of new biocarbon from sustainable Miscanthus biomass.

Oxidative acid treatments of biochar produced from Miscanthus were performed in this study using nitric acid, sulfuric acid, and a mixture of both. The structural and morphological changes of the acid-treated biochar were investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectroscopy, organic elemental analysis and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Improved surface functionality of the treated biochars was observed in their respective FT-IR spectra through the presence of nitro and carboxylic acid functional groups.

Maple leaf (Acer sp.) extract mediated green process for the functionalization of ZnO powders with silver nanoparticles.

The functionalization of ZnO powders with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) through a novel maple leaf extract mediated biological process was demonstrated. Maple leaf extract was found to be a very effective bioreduction agent for the reduction of silver ions. The reduction rate of Ag(+) into Ag(0) was found to be much faster than other previously reported bioreduction rates and was comparable to the reduction rates obtained through chemical means.

Biological synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Glycine max (soybean) leaf extract: an investigation on different soybean varieties.

Biological synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Glycine max (soybean) leaf extract as reducing agent was reported. The effect of different soybean varieties on the synthesis of silver nanoparticles was investigated. The microstructure of silver nanoparticles was identified from transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and the particle size of silver nanoparticles synthesized by this processes were from 25 to 100 nm.