In this study, we investigated the factors affecting the lifetime of liquid marbles placed on a glass surface and floating on water. It was found that the particle size, surface free energy and hydrophobicity of the encapsulating microparticles determine the effective surface tension and lifetime of a liquid marble floating on water. We formed liquid marbles using ultra-hydrophobic poly(perfluoroalkyl ethyl acrylate) powder with three different particle sizes (8 AE 1, 20 AE 2 and 60 AE 5 mm) and polytetrafluoroethylene powder (7 AE 2 mm). It was found that both the effective surface tension and lifetime of a floating liquid marble increased considerably with the decrease in the particle size of the ultra-hydrophobic poly(perfluoroalkyl ethyl acrylate) powder. We also determined that a floating liquid marble had a longer lifetime if the water contact angle of the polymer powder was high and its surface free energy was low by comparing the results of two different powders having very close average particle sizes but different hydrophobicities.

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Plastic waste production around the world is increasing, which leads to global plastic waste pollution. The need for an innovative solution to reduce this pollution is inevitable. Increased recycling of plastic waste alone is not a comprehensive solution. Furthermore, decreasing fossil-based plastic usage is an important aspect of sustainability. As an alternative to fossil-based plastics in the market, bio-based plastics are gaining in popularity. According to the studies conducted, products with similar performance characteristics can be obtained using biological feedstocks instead of fossil-based sources. In particular, bioplastic production from microalgae is a new opportunity to be explored and further improved. The aim of this study is to determine the current state of bioplastic production technologies from microalgae species and reveal possible optimization opportunities in the process and application areas. Therefore, the species used as resources for bioplastic production, the microalgae cultivation methods and bioplastic material production methods from microalgae were summarized.

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Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine have evolved into a different concept, the so-called clinical tissue engineering. Within this context, the synthesis of next-generation inorganic–organic hybrid constructs without the use of chemical crosslinkers emerges with a great potential for treating bone defects. Here, we propose a sophisticated approach for synthesizing cost-effective boron (B)- and silicon (Si)-incorporated collagen/hair keratin (B-Si-Col-HK) cryogels with the help of sol–gel reactions. In this approach, collagen and hair keratin were engaged with a B-Si network using tetraethyl orthosilicate as a silica precursor, and the obtained cryogels were characterized in depth with attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, solid-state NMR, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, porosity and swelling tests, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller and Barrett–Joyner–Halenda analyses, frequency sweep and temperature-dependent rheology, contact angle analysis, micromechanical tests, and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray analysis. In addition, the cell survival and osteogenic features of the cryogels were evaluated by the MTS test, live/dead assay, immuno/histochemistry, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analyses. We conclude that the B-Si-networked Col-HK cryogels having good mechanical durability and osteoinductive features would have the potential bone formation capability.