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Polymers
Special Issues
Structure-Property Relationships in Natural Polymers
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Structure-Property Relationships in Natural Polymers

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Processing and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 3279

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Congde Qiao

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Guest Editor
School of Materials Science & Engineering, Qilu University of Technology, Jinan 250353, China
Interests: hofmeister effect; inter/intra-molecular interactions; rheology; structure–property relationships

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The physical properties of polymers are controlled by their structure. The properties of synthetic polymers are relatively simple, as their structure is definite. However, the structure of natural polymers is very complicated, and their properties are diverse. Up to now, the structure–property relationships of natural polymers have been unclear, although extensive studies have been devoted to this issue. Due to their distinctive advantages of biodegradability, low toxicity, biocompatibility, and availability, natural polymers have been widely used in many different fields, including biomedicine, food, chemical, and so on. Thus, a quantitative understanding of the relationship between structure and properties is vital for the preparation, processing, and application of natural polymer materials. 

Dr. Congde Qiao
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

  • natural polymers
  • structure–property relationships
  • processing
  • hydrogen bonds
  • hydrophobic interactions
  • electrostatic interactions
  • polyelectrolytes

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2037 KiB  
Article
Structural and Thermal Characteristics of Buriti Tree Gum (Mauritia flexuosa)
by Diego Aires da Silva, Davi do Socorro Barros Brasil, Edinaldo José de Sousa Cunha, Giselle Cristine Melo Aires, Renato Araújo da Costa, José de Arimatéia Rodrigues do Rego and Rosinelson da Silva Pena
Polymers 2023, 15(7), 1662; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15071662 - 27 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1385
Abstract
A polysaccharide was isolated from the exudate of a buriti tree trunk (Mauritia flexuosa). The molecular structure, thermal stability, morphology, crystallinity, and elemental composition of the product were investigated through spectroscopic techniques, such as Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance [...] Read more.
A polysaccharide was isolated from the exudate of a buriti tree trunk (Mauritia flexuosa). The molecular structure, thermal stability, morphology, crystallinity, and elemental composition of the product were investigated through spectroscopic techniques, such as Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR 1H and 13C), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS); thermogravimetric analysis (TG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In addition to NMR molecular modeling studies, were performed to confirm the 1H and 13C chemical shifts to Gal and Xyl conformers. Buriti tree gum (BG) is an arabinogalactan, containing Rha, Ara, Xyl, and Gal, and degrades almost completely (98.5%) at 550 °C and has a maximum degradation peak at 291.97 °C, with a mass loss of 56.33%. In the temperature range of 255–290 °C, the energy involved in the BG degradation process was approximately 17 J/g. DSC indicated a glass transition temperature of 27.2 °C for BG, which had an irregular and heterogeneous morphology, with smooth or crumbling scaly regions, demonstrating the amorphous nature of BG that was confirmed by the XRD standard. EDS revealed the presence of carbon and oxygen, as well as calcium, magnesium, aluminum, silicon, chlorine, and potassium, in the BG composition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure-Property Relationships in Natural Polymers)
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15 pages, 2211 KiB  
Article
A Novel Starch from Talisia floresii Standl Seeds: Characterization of Its Physicochemical, Structural and Thermal Properties
by Jorge C. Canto-Pinto, Eduardo Reyes-Pérez, Emilio Pérez-Pacheco, Carlos R. Ríos-Soberanis, Yasser A. Chim-Chi, José D. Lira-Maas, Raciel J. Estrada-León, Mario A. A. Dzul-Cervantes and José H. Mina-Hernández
Polymers 2023, 15(1), 130; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15010130 - 28 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1411
Abstract
Colok seed (Talisia floresii Standl) represents 80% of the total fruit weight and is obtained from trees that grow mainly in Yucatan Peninsula. The aim of this work was the physicochemical characterization from colok starch seeds as an alternative to conventional [...] Read more.
Colok seed (Talisia floresii Standl) represents 80% of the total fruit weight and is obtained from trees that grow mainly in Yucatan Peninsula. The aim of this work was the physicochemical characterization from colok starch seeds as an alternative to conventional sources and to identify its characteristics for potential applications in different industrial sectors. Starch yield was 42.1% with low levels of lipids, ashes and fibers. The amylose content was 33.6 ± 1.15%. The gelatinization temperature was 85 ± 0.25 °C. Color analysis resulted in a starch with an intermediate luminosity, reflecting a dark color. Finally, in morphology, starch granule exhibited an average size of 18.7 μm, spherical, uniform and without fractures. Overall results demonstrated that isolated colok starch can be used in food products that require high processing temperatures, such as sauces, cookies, noodles, bread and food packages. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Structure-Property Relationships in Natural Polymers)
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