Engineering Lignocellulose Fibers with Higher Thermal Stability through Natural Fiber Welding

Durkin, David P.; Frank, Benjamin; Haverhals, Luke M.; Fairbrother, D. Howard; Long, Hugh C. De; Trulove, Paul C.

doi:10.1002/mame.201900042

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 54 publications

(71 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Samples (ca. 50 mg) were dried at 135 °C to remove adventitious H 2 O, heated (10 °C min –1 in air) to 900 °C, then held isothermal at 900 °C for 15 min. Because combustion in air leaves minimal carbonaceous char, final sample mass values (after the isothermal step) revealed the relative amount of TiO 2 within each composite (compared to controls absent TiO 2 NP).…”

Section: Methodssupporting

confidence: 89%

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Gulbrandson,

Larm,

Stachurski

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Eng. Mater.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Herein, we disclose the first utilization of mesoporous natural fiber welded (NFW) cellulose to sequester titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO 2 NPs) from aqueous colloids, resulting in "excellent" UV-protective textiles. Because mesoporous NFW cellulose possesses a high surface area (≥200 m 2 g −1 ) and nanometer sized pores (ca. 2−20 nm), it can be used as a scaffold for a wide variety of materials on the same scale. In this study, the mesoporous NFW cellulose encapsulates commercially available, 5 nm TiO 2 NPs from colloidal suspension, promoting rapid (ca. 60 s) uptake without disruptive in situ NP formation. Furthermore, drying of the material collapses the mesopores after colloid exposure, entrapping the NPs within the mesoporous biopolymer matrix. Our methods deliver TiO 2 NP at a loading of ca. 1.6 wt %, resulting in fabrics that possess ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) ratings of 200+ and are considered "Excellent" by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These results were compared against biopolymer controls (neat cellulose cloth and nonmesoporous NFW cellulose cloth), which possess distinctly lower UPF values of 12.1 and 41, respectively, when subjected to equivalent TiO 2 NP uptake conditions (NP loadings of 6.9 and 0.8 wt %, respectively). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images and accompanying energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) maps elucidate NP uptake within pores, showing a uniform layer of TiO 2 NPs extending 3 μm into the mesoporous NFW textile surface. Ultimately, this study discloses a novel application of biopolymer engineering showing the advantage of using mesoporous NFW cellulose as a scaffold for functional biocomposites. The study not only presents a simple and scalable method to make high-performance UV-protective fabrics but also details a generalizable approach for nanomaterial entrapment using mesoporous NFW composites, so long as the size of the encapsulated material and the scaffold are complementary.

show abstract

Section: Methodssupporting

confidence: 89%

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Gulbrandson,

Larm,

Stachurski

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Eng. Mater.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Thus, natural fiber welding offers a simple and green approach to further enhance and tailor the properties of biopolymer yarns and composites. [151] As previously mentioned, the main issue regarding any application of ILs on commercial scale is solvent recovery and re-use. As known, recovery by evaporating volatiles is energy demanding.…”

Section: Regeneration Of Cellulose From Ilsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, natural fiber welding offers a simple and green approach to further enhance and tailor the properties of biopolymer yarns and composites. [ 151 ]…”

Section: Regeneration Of Cellulose In Different Physical Formsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cellulose Regeneration and Chemical Recycling: Closing the “Cellulose Gap” Using Environmentally Benign Solvents

Seoud

Kostag

Jedvert

et al. 2020

Macro Materials & Eng

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

matched by synthetic fibers. Therefore, the demand on natural and fabricated cellulosic fibers is expected to continue and rise. The production of cotton, however, is not expected to meet this demand because of restrictions on farmland use and availability of irrigation water. [3] Anticipating the so-called "the cellulosic fiber gap," [1] the textile industry currently leads several initiatives for developing fibers that can complement cotton. [3] Consequently, there is incitement and opportunities for an increase in use of cellulose from other sources, in particular wood, and increased interest in physical (i.e., mechanical) and chemical recycling (CR) of biopolymers. [4] Production of fibers and other artifacts from cellulose extracted from wood involves chemical or physical dissolution of the biopolymer, followed by its regeneration in the desired physical form in an appropriate bath. The most important example of cellulose chemical dissolution (i.e., via covalent bond formation) is the viscose rayon fiber, produced by regeneration of cellulose from its xanthate in acid bath. The Lyocell fiber process involves, however, physical dissolution of cellulose in N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) hydrate, followed by regeneration in an aqueous bath. [5] Cellulose regeneration is not restricted to formation of fibers. The biopolymer and its derivatives, in particular esters, can be "shaped" into other physical forms including spheres of different diameters (down to the nanoscale), films produced by casting and spin coating, and nonwoven mats produced by electrospinning or solution blowing. This review covers some recent advances of the regeneration of cellulose from alkali solutions and ionic solvents, in particular those based on imidazole, quaternary ammonium electrolytes (QAEs), and salts of heterocyclic super-bases. We refer to these ionic solvents collectively as ionic liquids (ILs). Representative examples of the ILs employed for cellulose dissolution are shown in Figure 1. These solvents dissolve cellulose samples of a wide range of degrees of polymerization (DPs) and indices of crystallinity (Ics). For practical reasons, binary mixtures of ILs with molecular solvents (MSs) are used alongside pure ILs. This use is advantageous because of the concomitant decrease in solution viscosity; there are many examples where the binary solvent mixture dissolves more cellulose than the parent pure IL. [5] Strategies to mitigate the expected "cellulose gap" include increased use of wood cellulose, fabric reuse, and recycling. Ionic liquids (ILs) are employed for cellulose physical dissolution and shaping in different forms. This review focuses on the regeneration of dissolved cellulose as nanoparticles, membranes, nonwoven materials, and fibers. The solvents employed in these applications include ILs and alkali solutions without and with additives. Cellulose fibers obtained via the carbonate and carbamate processes are included. Chemical recycling (CR) of polycotton (cellulose plus poly(ethylene terephthalate)) is addressed...

show abstract

“…[30] Compared with conventional natural biopolymer processing methods that require toxic solvents or full dissolution, NFW is more environmentally friendly since many common ILs are non-toxic and can be recycled. [32] In addition, NFW is extremely versatile; our previous studies have successfully demonstrated fiber-welded wearable supercapacitors, [8] water treatment catalysts, [11,33] thermally stable textile yarns, [34] and most recently polyionic biocomposites. [35] In the present study, antimicrobial linen powder containing various mass loadings of Ag NPs was fabricated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antimicrobial Biocomposites Fiber‐Welded with Lignocellulose Containing Silver Nanoparticles

Shen

Gulbrandson

Park

et al. 2022

Macro Materials & Eng

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biopolymer materials that use silver to imbue antimicrobial properties are finding broad application in areas such as packaging, textiles, and building materials. Conventional methods to incorporate silver can damage the supporting biopolymer matrix and/or result in large‐sized silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) with poor antimicrobial efficacy. To mitigate these concerns, in this study, uniformly distributed, small (≈5–10 nm) Ag NPs are grown into a well‐preserved lignocellulose powder matrix by using a gas‐phase reducing agent at low temperature. The Ag NP‐ lignocellulose powders are fully characterized and their antimicrobial performance is investigated by inactivating planktonic bacteria and inhibiting biofilms. The most potent antimicrobial product, L_10Ag, achieves more than 4‐log reduction in planktonic bacterial viability within 3 h and a biofilm inhibition rate of 97.9%. Furthermore, the Ag NP impregnated powders are post‐processed through natural fiber welding (NFW), an emergent, innovative, ionic liquid (IL)‐based method that can be used to engineer biopolymer materials into new functional biocomposites. NFW transforms the powders into higher‐order structures, imparting anti‐microbial capacity without degrading the material properties of the biopolymer support.

show abstract

Engineering Lignocellulose Fibers with Higher Thermal Stability through Natural Fiber Welding

Cited by 8 publications

References 54 publications

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Cellulose Regeneration and Chemical Recycling: Closing the “Cellulose Gap” Using Environmentally Benign Solvents

Antimicrobial Biocomposites Fiber‐Welded with Lignocellulose Containing Silver Nanoparticles

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Engineering Lignocellulose Fibers with Higher Thermal Stability through Natural Fiber Welding

Cited by 8 publications

References 54 publications

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO2 Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO2 Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Cellulose Regeneration and Chemical Recycling: Closing the “Cellulose Gap” Using Environmentally Benign Solvents

Antimicrobial Biocomposites Fiber‐Welded with Lignocellulose Containing Silver Nanoparticles

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection

Mesoporous Cellulose-TiO₂ Nanoparticle Composite Textile for “Excellent” UV Protection