Lignocellulosic Bionanomaterials for Biosensor Applications.

The rapid population growth, increasing global energy demand, climate change, and excessive use of fossil fuels have adversely affected environmental management and sustainability. Furthermore, the requirements for a safer ecology and environment have necessitated the use of renewable materials, thereby solving the problem of sustainability of resources. In this perspective, lignocellulosic biomass is an attractive natural resource because of its abundance, renewability, recyclability, and low cost. The ever-increasing developments in nanotechnology have opened up new vistas in sensor fabrication such as biosensor design for electronics, communication, automobile, optical products, packaging, textile, biomedical, and tissue engineering. Due to their outstanding properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, non-toxicity, improved electrical and thermal conductivity, high physical and mechanical properties, high surface area and catalytic activity, lignocellulosic bionanomaterials including nanocellulose and nanolignin emerge as very promising raw materials to be used in the development of high-impact biosensors. In this article, the use of lignocellulosic bionanomaterials in biosensor applications is reviewed and major challenges and opportunities are identified.

Cellulose and lignin in place of EPDM and carbon black for automotive sealing profiles.

This study aims at using microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) and lignin in place of EPDM and carbon black with specified amounts to investigate the chemical, thermal, rheometric, mechanical, thermo-aging and morphological properties of EPDM elastomers. At the end of the study, the introduction of the MCC and lignin enabled higher elastic modulus and tear strength unlike tensile strength by revealing minor chemical shifts and lower thermal stability. In addition, the MCC and lignin facilitated the vulcanization process with fewer torque values by dispersing mostly homogeneously in the matrix. It was shown that all of the mechanical values were found to be in the range of the specified standard after the replacement of the MCC and lignin.

Influence of PVA and silica on chemical, thermo-mechanical and electrical properties of Celluclast-treated nanofibrillated cellulose composites.

This study reports on the effects of organic polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and inorganic silica polymer on properties of Celluclast-treated nanofibrillated cellulose composites. Nanofibrillated cellulose was isolated from Eucalyptus camaldulensis and prior to high-pressure homogenizing was pretreated with Celluclast enzyme in order to lower energy consumption. Three nanocomposite films were fabricated via the casting process: nanofibrillated cellulose (CNF), nanocellulose-PVA (CNF-P) and nanocellulose-silica (CNF-Si). Chemical characterization, crystallization and thermal stability were determined using FT-IR and TGA. Morphological alterations were monitored with SEM. The Young's and storage moduli of the nanocomposites were determined via a universal testing machine and DTMA. The real and imaginary parts of permittivity and electric modulus were evaluated using an impedance analyzer. The crystallinity values of the nanocomposites calculated from the FT-IR were in agreement with the TGA results, showing that the lowest crystallinity value was in the CNF-Si. The CNF-P displayed the highest tensile strength. At a high temperature interval, the storage modulus of the CNF-Si was greater than that of the CNF or CNF-P. The CNF-Si also exhibited a completed singular relaxation process, while the CNF and the CNF-P processes were uncompleted. Consequently, in terms of industrial applications, although the CNF-P composite had mechanical advantages, the CNF-Si composite displayed the best thermo-mechanical properties.

Evaluating pretreatment techniques for converting hazelnut husks to bioethanol.

This study examined the suitability of husk waste for bioethanol production and compared pretreatment techniques with regard to their efficiencies. Results showed that 4% NaBH4 (90 min) delignified the highest amount of lignin (49.1%) from the structure. The highest xylan solubility (77.9%) was observed when samples were treated with 4% NaOH for 90 min. Pretreatment with NaOH and NaBH4, compared to H2O2 and H2SO4, resulted in selective delignification. The highest glucan to glucose conversion (74.4%) and the highest ethanol yield (52.6 g/kg husks) were observed for samples treated with 2% NaOH for 90 min.

Sodium borohydrate (NaBH4) pretreatment for efficient enzymatic saccharification of wheat straw.

In this study, the aim was to examine bioethanol production of wheat straw residues using an alternative chemical, sodium borohydrate (NaBH(4)) in chemical pretreatment step. The obtained results showed that sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and NaBH(4) treated straw resulted in 87.8% and 83.3% glucan conversion in enzymatic hydrolysis, but hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) (74.7%) and sulfuric acid (H(2)SO(4)) (71.7%) had lower glucan conversion. The highest ethanol yield from untreated straw (115 g/kg) was observed for 4% NaBH(4) pretreated sample (60 min) and the theoretical yield (86.9%) was also calculated to be highest for the sample.

Incorporation of hazelnut shell and husk in MDF production.

Hazelnut shell and husk (Coryllus arellana L.) is an abundant agricultural residue in Turkey and investigating the possibilities of utilizing husk and shell in panel production might help to overcome the raw material shortage that the panel industry is facing. The aim of this work was to investigate the possibilities of utilizing hazelnut shell and husk in medium density fiberboard (MDF) production. To produce general purpose fiberboards, fiber-husk and fiber-shell mixtures at various percentages were examined in this study. The results indicated that panels could be produced utilizing hazelnut husk up to 20% addition without falling below the properties required in the standards. Shell addition was restricted up to 10%, because higher addition levels diminished the elastic modulus and internal bond strength below the acceptable level.

Utilizing peanut husk (Arachis hypogaea L.) in the manufacture of medium-density fiberboards.

The main objective of this study was to investigate the potential of peanut husk (Arachis hypogaea L.) as a fiber-peanut mixture to produce fiberboards for general purposes. For panel production, the addition of peanut husk at various percentages to the wood fiber was the only variable. Panels produced utilizing peanut husk were compared to panels produced using 100% wood fiber. The chemical properties of peanut husk; holocellulose and lignin content, alcohol-benzene, hot and cold water, and dilute alkali (1% NaOH) solubility, were also determined. Results indicated that panels could be produced utilizing up to 30% peanut husk without affecting the usability of the panels. It was not possible to meet the minimum IB strength standards when peanut husk was added to the mixture. Higher additions resulted in panels having lower elastic and rupture moduli than the minimum requirements according to TS-EN standards.