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The main goal of the present work was to develop a value-added product of biodegradable material for sustainable packaging. The use of agriculture waste-derived carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) mainly is to reduce the cost involved in the development of the film, at present commercially available CMS is costly. The main focus of the research is to translate the agricultural waste-derived CMC to useful biodegradable polymer suitable for packaging material. During this process CMC was extracted from the agricultural waste mainly sugar cane bagasse and the blends were prepared using CMC (waste derived), gelatin, agar and varied concentrations of glycerol; 1.5% (sample A), 2% (sample B), and 2.5% (sample C) was added. Thus, the film derived from the sample C (gelatin + CMC + agar) with 2.0% glycerol as a plasticizer exhibited excellent properties than other samples A and B. The physiochemical properties of each developed biodegradable plastics (sample A, B, C) were characterized using Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopy and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The swelling test, solubility in different solvents, oil permeability coefficient, water permeability (WP), mechanical strength of the produced material was claimed to be a good material for packaging and meanwhile its biodegradability (soil burial method) indicated their environmental compatibility nature and commercial properties. The reflected work is a novel approach, and which is vital in the conversion of organic waste to value-added product development. There is also another way to utilize commercial CMC in preparation of polymeric blends for the packaging material, which can save considerable time involved in the recovery of CMC from sugarcane bagasse.

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This study considered the impacts of diesel–soybean biodiesel blends mixed with 3% cerium coated zinc oxide (Ce-ZnO) nanoparticles on the performance, emission, and combustion characteristics of a single cylinder diesel engine. The fuel blends were prepared using 25% soybean biodiesel in diesel (SBME25). Ce-ZnO nanoparticle additives were blended with SBME25 at 25, 50, and 75 ppm using the ultrasonication process with a surfactant (Span 80) at 2 vol.% to enhance the stability of the blend. A variable compression ratio engine operated at a 19.5:1 compression ratio (CR) using these blends resulted in an improvement in overall engine characteristics. With 50 ppm Ce-ZnO nanoparticle additive in SBME25 (SBME25Ce-ZnO50), the brake thermal efficiency (BTE) and heat release rate (HRR) increased by 20.66% and 18.1%, respectively; brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) by 21.81%; and the CO, smoke, and hydrocarbon (HC) decreased by 30%, 18.7%, and 21.5%, respectively, compared to SBME25 fuel operation. However, the oxides of nitrogen slightly rose for all the nanoparticle added blends. As such, 50 ppm of Ce-ZnO nanoparticle in the blend is a potent choice for the enhancement of engine performance, combustion, and emission characteristics.

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