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Polymers
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Green Synthesis of Polymers
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Green Synthesis of Polymers

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomacromolecules, Biobased and Biodegradable Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 May 2024 | Viewed by 4098

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Huan Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, China
Interests: biomass-based polymer materials; energy storage; chemicals; green synthesis method; photoelectric material; biomass valorization; functional polymeric materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biomass, as the most abundant sustainable resource in nature, is one of the most promising substitutes for fossil resources. Over the past years, tremendous efforts have been devoted to the valorization of biomass in energy storage, materials, and chemicals. Biomass-based polymer materials with novel properties and applications are drawing extensive attention due to their biocompatibility and biodegradability. Synthesizing biomass-based polymer materials with new functionalities via green routes will bring about profound changes in the way we utilize biomass, especially by promoting the clean production of biomass and the development of a circular economy.

This Special Issue is devoted to the most recent research on these topics, covering all aspects concerning the synthesis and application of biomass-based polymers.

Dr. Huan Wang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biomass-based polymer materials
  • energy storage
  • chemicals
  • green synthesis methods
  • photoelectric materials
  • biomass valorization
  • functional polymeric materials

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 11317 KiB  
Article
Production of Lignin-Derived Functional Material for Efficient Electromagnetic Wave Absorption with an Ultralow Filler Ratio
by Yuebin Xi, Xingxiang Ji, Fangong Kong, Tianjin Li and Binpeng Zhang
Polymers 2024, 16(2), 201; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16020201 - 10 Jan 2024
Viewed by 656
Abstract
Industrial lignin, a by-product of pulping for papermaking fibers or of second-generation ethanol production, is primarily served as a low-grade combustible energy source. The fabrication of high-value-added functional materials with industrial lignin is still a challenge. Herein, a three-dimensional hierarchical lignin-derived porous carbon [...] Read more.
Industrial lignin, a by-product of pulping for papermaking fibers or of second-generation ethanol production, is primarily served as a low-grade combustible energy source. The fabrication of high-value-added functional materials with industrial lignin is still a challenge. Herein, a three-dimensional hierarchical lignin-derived porous carbon (HLPC) was prepared with lignosulfonate as the carbon source and MgCO3 as the template. The uniform mixing of precursor and template agent resulted in the construction of a three-dimensional hierarchical porous structure. HLPC presented excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance. With a low filler content of 7 wt%, HLPC showed a minimum reflection loss (RL) value of −41.8 dB (1.7 mm, 13.8 GHz), and a maximum effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of 4.53 GHz (1.6 mm). In addition, the enhancement mechanism of HLPC for EMW absorption was also explored through comparing the morphology and electromagnetic parameters of lignin-derived carbon (LC) and lignin-derived porous carbon (LPC). The three-dimensional hierarchical porous structure endowed the carbon with a high pore volume, resulting in an abundant gas–solid interface between air and carbon for interfacial polarization. This structure also provided conductive networks for conduction loss. This work offers a strategy to synthesize biomass-based carbon for high-performance EMW absorption. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Synthesis of Polymers)
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14 pages, 2878 KiB  
Article
Preparation and Photovoltaic Performance of a Composite TiO2 Nanotube Array/Polyaniline UV Photodetector
by Chunlian Liu, Peipei Huang, Wei Wang, Miao Tan, Fangbao Fu and Yunhui Feng
Polymers 2023, 15(22), 4400; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15224400 - 14 Nov 2023
Viewed by 749
Abstract
TiO2 has great potential for application in UV photodetectors due to its excellent photoelectric response. In this work, composite nanomaterials of TiO2 nanotube arrays (TiO2 NTAs) and polyaniline (PANI) were successfully prepared on titanium sheets using an anodic oxidation electrochemical [...] Read more.
TiO2 has great potential for application in UV photodetectors due to its excellent photoelectric response. In this work, composite nanomaterials of TiO2 nanotube arrays (TiO2 NTAs) and polyaniline (PANI) were successfully prepared on titanium sheets using an anodic oxidation electrochemical method. The results showed that the TiO2 NTA/PANI composite materials had excellent UV photosensitivity and responsiveness and good stability and reproducibility. This was mainly attributed to the p–n heterostructure formed inside the TiO2 NTA/PANI composites that hindered the recombination of photogenerated electron–hole pairs and improved their utilization of UV light. This work provides a theoretical basis for the application of metal oxides in UV photodetectors, which is important for the development of UV photodetectors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Synthesis of Polymers)
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13 pages, 3976 KiB  
Article
Preparation of ZnO Nanosheet Array and Research on ZnO/PANI/ZnO Ultraviolet Photodetector
by Xuanzhen Zhang, Yunhui Feng, Fangbao Fu and Huan Wang
Polymers 2023, 15(22), 4399; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15224399 - 14 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 900
Abstract
High-performance ultraviolet photodetectors have important scientific research significance and practical application value, which has been the focus of researchers. In this work, we have constructed a highly photosensitive UV photodetector with a unique “sandwich” structure, which was mainly composed of two layers of [...] Read more.
High-performance ultraviolet photodetectors have important scientific research significance and practical application value, which has been the focus of researchers. In this work, we have constructed a highly photosensitive UV photodetector with a unique “sandwich” structure, which was mainly composed of two layers of ZnO nanosheet arrays and one layer of polyaniline (PANI). The results showed that the UV current of ZnO/PANI devices was 100 times higher than that of pure ZnO devices under the same UV irradiation time. At a 365 nm wavelength, the device had excellent photocurrent responsiveness and photoconductivity. This high performance was attributed to the large specific surface area of ZnO nanosheets and the p-n junction formed between P-type PANI nano-porous film and N-type ZnO nanosheets. This provides a solid theoretical basis for the application of ZnO nanosheets in ultraviolet detection, and possesses significance for the development of ultraviolet photodetectors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Synthesis of Polymers)
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12 pages, 3595 KiB  
Article
Effect of Torrefaction on the Physiochemical Characteristics and Pyrolysis of the Corn Stalk
by Lei Chen, Xiangqian Chen, Yuxiao Zhao, Xinping Xie, Shuangxia Yang, Dongliang Hua, Chuanlei Wang and Tianjin Li
Polymers 2023, 15(20), 4069; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15204069 - 12 Oct 2023
Viewed by 680
Abstract
Torrefaction of biomass is one of the most promising pretreatment methods for deriving biofuels from biomass via thermochemical conversion processes. In this work, the changes in physicochemical properties and morphology features of the torrefied corn stalk, the changes in physicochemical properties and morphology [...] Read more.
Torrefaction of biomass is one of the most promising pretreatment methods for deriving biofuels from biomass via thermochemical conversion processes. In this work, the changes in physicochemical properties and morphology features of the torrefied corn stalk, the changes in physicochemical properties and morphology features of the torrefied corn stalk were investigated. The results of this study showed that the elemental content and proximate analysis of the torrefied corn stalk significantly changed compared with those of the raw corn stalk. In particular, at 300 °C, the volatile content decreased to 41.79%, while the fixed carbon content and higher heating value increased to 42.22% and 21.31 MJ/kg, respectively. The H/C and O/C molar ratios of torrefied corn stalk at the 300 °C were drastically reduced to 0.99 and 0.27, respectively, which are similar to those of conventional coals in China. Numerous cracks and pores were observed in the sample surface of torrefied corn stalk at the torrefaction temperature range of 275 °C–300 °C, which could facilitate the potential application of the sample in the adsorption process and promote the release of gas products in pyrolysis. In the pyrolysis phase, the liquid products of the torrefied corn stalk decreased, but the H2/CO ratio and the lower heating value of the torrefied corn stalk increased compared with those of the raw corn stalk. This work paves a new strategy for the investigation of the effect of torrefaction on the physiochemical characteristics and pyrolysis of the corn stalk, highlighting the application potential in the conversion of biomass. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Synthesis of Polymers)
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11 pages, 2240 KiB  
Article
Silver Ions Drive Ordered Self-Assembly Mechanisms and Inherent Properties of Lignin Nanoflowers
by Kai Chen, Encheng Liu, Shengrong Yuan and Baoquan Zhang
Polymers 2023, 15(17), 3541; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15173541 - 25 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 677
Abstract
Designing anisotropic lignin-based particles and promoting the high-value utilization of lignin have nowadays drawn much attention from scientists. However, systematic studies addressing the self-assembly mechanisms of anisotropic lignin-based particles are scarce. In this work, an interaction including the electrostatic forces and chelating forces [...] Read more.
Designing anisotropic lignin-based particles and promoting the high-value utilization of lignin have nowadays drawn much attention from scientists. However, systematic studies addressing the self-assembly mechanisms of anisotropic lignin-based particles are scarce. In this work, an interaction including the electrostatic forces and chelating forces between lignin and Ag+ was regulated via carboxymethylation modification. Subsequently, the aggregation morphology of carboxymethylated lignin in a Ag+ solution was observed via SEM. The result showed that a large number of Ag+ intercalated into the lignin molecules when the grafting degree of the carboxyl groups increased from 0.17 mmol/g to 0.53 mmol/g, which caused the lignin molecules to gradually transform from disordered blocks to ordered layers. Dynamics research indicated that the adsorption process of Ag+ in carboxymethylated lignin conforms to the Pseudo-first-order kinetic model. The saturated adsorption amount of Ag+ in the carboxymethylated lignin reached 1981.7 mg/g when the grafting rate of carboxyl groups increased to 0.53 mmol/g, which then fully intercalated into lignin molecules and formed a layered structure. The thermodynamic parameters showed that the thermal adsorption process conforms to the Langmuir model, which indicates that Ag+ is monolayer-adsorbed and intercalated into lignin molecules. Meanwhile, the ΔH values are more than 0, which suggests that this adsorption process is a endothermic reaction and that a higher temperature is conducive to an adsorption reaction. Therefore, self-assembly of lignin in a Ag+ solution under 70 °C is more conducive to the formation of a nanoflower structure, which is consistent with our experimental result. Finally, pH-responsive Pickering emulsions were successfully prepared using a lignin-based nanoflowers, which demonstrated their potential as a catalytic platform in the interface catalysis field. This work offers a deeper understanding into the formation mechanism of anisotropic lignin-based nanoflowers and hopes to be helpful for designing and preparing anisotropic lignin-based particles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Synthesis of Polymers)
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