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Polymers
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Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources
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Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 April 2024) | Viewed by 5590

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Francisco Avelino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Research, Extension and Production, Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Ceará (IFCE), Iguatu 63503-790, CE, Brazil
Interests: polymer chemistry; biomass valorization; lignin chemistry; chemistry of materials
Prof. Dr. Selma Elaine Mazzetto

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Organic and Inorganic Chemistry, Federal University of Ceará (UFC), Contorno Street, Fortaleza 60451970, Brazil
Interests: bio-based materials; chemistry of materials; macromolecules

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue intends to publish high quality research and review articles related to “Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources”. The main topics include the following themes:

  • New advances in the biomass valorisation and biorefinery;
  • New advances in the obtainment of bio-based building blocks and their valorisation in polymer chemistry (synthesis of macromonomers; polyols; etc);
  • Development of bio-based materials through innovative and ecofriendly routes;
  • Development of new synthetic routes for polymerization and chemical modification;
  • Potential technological applications of bio-based materials (biomedical; catalysis; biosorbents; drug carriers; antimicrobial and antioxidant agents; high-performance thermosetting polymers; membranes; organic coatings for corrosion protection; hydrogels; etc.). 

The Editors will also consider any related topics that have not been clearly specified above. For review articles, the authors must contact the Guest Editor before the submission and send him a cover letter for analysis.  

Prof. Dr. Francisco Avelino
Prof. Dr. Selma Elaine Mazzetto
Guest Editors

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 polymers
  • new materials from biomass
  • hemicelluloses
  • cellulose
  • lignin
  • prospects for the development of the market of catalysts for the production of chemicals
  • characterization of polymer materials
  • ecology of biomass processing
  • natural polymer modification
  • conversion of biomass and its components
  • calculations of polymer materials
  • pyrolysis of plant components
  • depolymerization of natural polymers

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 4941 KiB  
Article
Polyaniline as a Nitrogen Source and Lignosulfonate as a Sulphur Source for the Preparation of the Porous Carbon Adsorption of Dyes and Heavy Metal Ions
by Wenjuan Wu, Penghui Li, Wanting Su, Zifei Yan, Xinyan Wang, Siyu Xu, Yumeng Wei and Caiwen Wu
Polymers 2023, 15(23), 4515; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15234515 - 24 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 736
Abstract
Using agricultural and forestry wastes as raw materials, adsorbent materials were prepared for dye adsorption in wastewater, which can minimize the environmental load and fully realize sustainability by treating waste with waste. Taking lignosulfonate as a raw material, due to its molecular structure [...] Read more.
Using agricultural and forestry wastes as raw materials, adsorbent materials were prepared for dye adsorption in wastewater, which can minimize the environmental load and fully realize sustainability by treating waste with waste. Taking lignosulfonate as a raw material, due to its molecular structure having more reactive groups, it is easy to form composite materials via a chemical oxidation reaction with an aniline monomer. After that, using a sodium lignosulfonate/polyaniline composite as the precursor, the activated high-temperature pyrolysis process is used to prepare porous carbon materials with controllable morphology, structure, oxygen, sulfur, and nitrogen content, which opens up a new way for the preparation of functional carbon materials. When the prepared O-N-S co-doped activated carbon materials (SNC) were used as adsorbents, the adsorption study of cationic dye methylene blue was carried out, and the removal rate of SNC could reach up to 99.53% in a methylene blue solution with an initial concentration of 100 mg/L, which was much higher than that of undoped lignocellulosic carbon materials, and the kinetic model conformed to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The adsorption equilibrium amount of NC (lignosulfonate-free) and SNC reached 478.30 mg/g and 509.00 mg/g, respectively, at an initial concentration of 500 mg/L, which was consistent with the Langmuir adsorption isothermal model, and the adsorption of methylene blue on the surface of the carbon material was a monomolecular layer. The adsorption of methylene blue dye on the carbon-based adsorbent was confirmed to be a spontaneous and feasible adsorption process by thermodynamic parameters. Finally, the adsorption of SNC on methylene blue, rhodamine B, Congo red, and methyl orange dyes were compared, and it was found that the material adsorbed cationic dyes better. Furthermore, we also studied the adsorption of SNC on different kinds of heavy metal ions and found that its adsorption selectivity is better for Cr3+ and Pb2+ ions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources)
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19 pages, 2386 KiB  
Article
New Quaternary Ammonium Derivatives Based on Citrus Pectin
by Magdalena-Cristina Stanciu, Marieta Nichifor, Gabriela-Liliana Ailiesei, Irina Popescu, Gabriela-Elena Hitruc, Luminita Ghimici and Cristina G. Tuchilus
Polymers 2023, 15(23), 4492; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15234492 - 22 Nov 2023
Viewed by 832
Abstract
New citrus pectin derivatives carrying pendant N,N-dimethyl-N-alkyl-N-(2-hydroxy propyl) ammonium chloride groups were achieved via polysaccharide derivatization with a mixture of N,N-dimethyl-N-alkyl amine (alkyl = ethyl, butyl, benzyl, octyl, dodecyl) and epichlorohydrin [...] Read more.
New citrus pectin derivatives carrying pendant N,N-dimethyl-N-alkyl-N-(2-hydroxy propyl) ammonium chloride groups were achieved via polysaccharide derivatization with a mixture of N,N-dimethyl-N-alkyl amine (alkyl = ethyl, butyl, benzyl, octyl, dodecyl) and epichlorohydrin in aqueous solution. The structural characteristics of the polymers were examined via elemental analysis, conductometric titration, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and 1D (1H and 13C) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Capillary viscosity measurements allowed for the study of viscometric behavior as well as the determination of viscosity–average molar mass for pristine polysaccharide and intrinsic viscosity ([η]) values for pectin and its derivatives. Dynamic light scattering measurements (DLS) showed that pectin-based polymers formed aggregates in aqueous solution with a unimodal distribution. Critical aggregation concentration (cac) for the hydrophobic pectin derivatives were determined using fluorescence spectroscopy. Atom force microscopy (AFM) images allowed for the investigation of the morphology of polymeric populations obtained in aqueous solution, consisting of flocs and aggregates for crude pectin and its hydrophilic derivatives and well-organized aggregates for lipophilic pectin derivatives. Antimicrobial activity, examined using the disc diffusion method, proved that all polymers were active against Staphylococcus aureus bacterium and Candida albicans yeast. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources)
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14 pages, 1266 KiB  
Article
Antimicrobial and Flame-Retardant Coatings Prepared from Nano- and Microparticles of Unmodified and Nitrogen-Modified Polyphenols
by Petri Widsten, Satu Salo, Tuula Hakkarainen, Thu Lam Nguyen, Marc Borrega and Olesya Fearon
Polymers 2023, 15(4), 992; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15040992 - 16 Feb 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1740
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to elucidate the structures and functional properties of tannin- and lignin-derived nano- and microparticles and the coatings prepared from them. Nanoparticles prepared from technical lignins and water-insoluble tannin obtained from softwood bark showed large differences in the [...] Read more.
The purpose of this study was to elucidate the structures and functional properties of tannin- and lignin-derived nano- and microparticles and the coatings prepared from them. Nanoparticles prepared from technical lignins and water-insoluble tannin obtained from softwood bark showed large differences in the suspension testing of antibacterial efficacy against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria. A common factor among the most effective lignin nanoparticles was a relatively low molar mass of the lignin, but that alone did not guarantee high efficacy. Tannin nanoparticles showed good antibacterial activity both in suspension testing and as coatings applied onto cellulose. The nanoparticles of nitrogen-modified tannin and the small microparticles of nitrogen-modified kraft lignin exhibited promising flame-retardant parameters when applied as coatings on cellulose. These results illustrate the potential of nano- and microsized particles of unmodified and chemically modified polyphenols to provide functional coatings to cellulosic substrates for environments and applications with high hygiene and fire safety requirements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources)
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10 pages, 3099 KiB  
Article
Fabrication of Rechargeable Photoactive Silk Fibroin/Polyvinyl Alcohol Blend Nanofibrous Membranes for Killing Bacteria
by Shixiong Yi, Jiaxue Wu, Ying Zhou, Xiaomeng Wang, Yunfei Pu and Boli Ran
Polymers 2022, 14(12), 2499; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14122499 - 19 Jun 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1591
Abstract
Antibacterial materials that prevent bacterial infections and mitigate bacterial virulence have attracted great scientific interest. In recent decades, bactericidal polymers have been presented as promising candidates to combat bacterial pathogens. However, the preparation of such materials has proven to be extremely challenging. Herein, [...] Read more.
Antibacterial materials that prevent bacterial infections and mitigate bacterial virulence have attracted great scientific interest. In recent decades, bactericidal polymers have been presented as promising candidates to combat bacterial pathogens. However, the preparation of such materials has proven to be extremely challenging. Herein, photoactive silk fibroin/polyvinyl alcohol blended nanofibrous membranes grafted with 3,3’,4,4’-benzophenone tetracarboxylic dianhydride (G-SF/PVA BNM) were fabricated by an electrospinning technique. The premise of this work is that the G-SF/PVA BNM can store photoactive activity under light irradiation and release reactive oxygen species for killing bacteria under dark conditions. The results showed that the resultant G-SF/PVA BNM exhibited the integrated properties of an ultrathin fiber diameter (298 nm), good mechanical properties, robust photoactive activity and photo-store capacity, and great photoinduced antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus (99.999% bacterial reduction with 120 min). The successful construction of blended nanofibrous membranes gives a new possibility to the design of highly efficient antibacterial materials for public health protection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Biopolymers from Natural Resources)
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