Propionic Anhydride Modification of Cellulosic Kenaf Fibre Enhancement with Bionanocarbon in Nanobiocomposites

The use of chemical modification of cellulosic fibre is applied in order to increase the hydrophobicity, hence improving the compatibility between the fibre and matrix bonding. In this study, the effect of propionic anhydride modification of kenaf fibre was investigated to determine the role of bionanocarbon from oil palm shell agricultural wastes in the improvement of the functional properties of bionanocomposites. The vinyl esters reinforced with unmodified and propionic anhydride modified kenaf fibres bio nanocomposites were prepared using 0, 1, 3, 5 wt% of bio-nanocarbon. Characterisation of the fabricated bionanocomposite was carried out using FESEM, TEM, FT-IR and TGA to investigate the morphological analysis, surface properties, functional and thermal analyses, respectively. Mechanical performance of bionanocomposites was evaluated according to standard methods. The chemical modification of cellulosic fibre with the incorporation of bionanocarbon in the matrix exhibited high enhancement of the tensile, flexural, and impact strengths, for approximately 63.91%, 49.61% and 54.82%, respectively. The morphological, structural and functional analyses revealed that better compatibility of the modified fibre–matrix interaction was achieved at 3% bionanocarbon loading, which indicated improved properties of the bionanocomposite. The nanocomposites exhibited high degradation temperature which signified good thermal stability properties. The improved properties of the bionanocomposite were attributed to the effect of the surface modification and bionanocarbon enhancement of the fibre–matrix networks.     

Synthetic–Natural Bionanocomposite Hydrogels on the Basis of Polyvinyl Alcohol and Egg White

A series of bionanocomposite hydrogels composed of polyvinyl alcohol, a synthetic polymer, and egg white, a natural protein containing material, were prepared by the freezing- thawing cyclic method. Na-montmorillonite nanoclay (Na-MMT), as a crosslinker and reinforcing agent, with 0, 5, 10, and 15 wt% loadings (based on the dried mass of the bionanocomposite hydrogel) was incorporated in the polyvinyl alcohol and egg white hydrogel matrix. The microstructural characteristics of the prepared bionanocomposite hydrogels were characterized by the X-ray diffractometry, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and gel fraction measurements. Thermal and mechanical properties of the samples were also studied using differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanical-thermal analysis. The swelling and drying kinetics and mechanisms of the bionanocomposite hydrogels were also studied. The bionanocomposite hydrogels had an exfoliated Na-MMT morphology with an appropriate dispersion of nanoclay layers in the hydrogel matrix. The results showed that the Na-MMT platelets acted as crosslinkers and created a hydrogel network with a smaller pore size in the bio-nanocomposite hydrogels, compared with the clay-free hydrogel. The obtained thermal and mechanical properties confirmed the reinforcing effect of the nanoclay in the bionanocomposite hydrogels. The swelling and drying rates of the bionanocomposite hydrogels exhibited an inverse dependency on the nanoclay loading. In general, it was concluded that the prepared bionanocomposite hydrogels could be used as appropriate biomaterials in biomedical applications, especially in drug delivery, tissue engineering and wound care.     

Direct transfer of preformed patterned bio-nanocomposite films on polyelectrolyte multilayer templates

Microarrays containing multiple, nanostructured layers of biological materials would enable high-throughput screening of drug candidates, investigation of protein-mediated cell adhesion, and fabrication of novel biosensors. In this paper, we have examined in detail an approach that allows high-quality microarrays of layered, bionanocomposite films to be deposited on virtually any substrate. The approach uses LBL self-assembly to pre-establish a multilayered structure on an elastomeric stamp, and then uses microCP to transfer the 3-D structure intact to the target surface. For examples, different 3-D patterns containing dendrimers, polyelectrolyte multilayers and two proteins, sADH and sDH, have been fabricated. For the first time, the approach was also extended to create overlaid bionanocomposite patterns and multiple proteins containing patterns. The approach overcomes a problem encountered when using microCP to establish a pattern on the target surface and then building sequential layers on the pattern via LBL self-assembly. Amphiphilic molecules such as proteins and dendrimers tend to adsorb both to the patterned features as well as the underlying substrate, resulting in low-quality patterns. By circumventing this problem, this research significantly extends the range of surfaces and layering constituents that can be used to fabricate 3-D, patterned, bionanocomposite structures. [image in text]     

明胶/Fe2S3纳米生物复合物形成反应的热力学及明胶构象变化

在pH=7.40条件下,采用一锅化学反应法制得水溶性明胶/Fe₂S₃纳米生物复合物,扫描电镜照片显示Fe₂S₃颗粒为棒状.根据吸光度与Fe₂S₃浓度关系,由Benesi-Hildebrand方程计算了不同温度下反应的形成常数K (293 K: 14.47×10² L·mol^-1; 297 K: 9.24×10² L·mol^-1; 309 K: 1.70×10² L·mol^-1)及对应温度下反应的热力学参数(Δ_rG_m = -17.88/-16.68/-13.09 kJ·mol^-1; Δ_rH_m = -105.57 kJ·mol^-1; Δ_rS_m = -299.28 J·K^-1·mol^-1),结果表明明胶/Fe₂S₃纳米生物复合物的形成反应是自发的放热过程,且为焓驱动.傅里叶变换红外光谱表明,Fe₂S₃主要与明胶大分子肽链中的酰胺键结合;对红外光谱进行去卷积拟合,结果表明:明胶蛋白质的 α-螺旋含量减少,β-折叠含量明显增加.结合紫外和红外光谱测试结果对复合物的形成机理作了初步的推测:首先Fe³⁺与明胶大分子中的酰胺键结合形成明胶/Fe³⁺复合物,然后S^2-与明胶/Fe³⁺中的Fe³⁺形成明胶/Fe₂S₃复合物.     

纳米ZnS与明胶蛋白质的相互作用

利用透射电子显微镜(TEM)、X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、紫外-可见吸收光谱(UV-Vis)、傅里叶变换红外光谱(FT-IR)、同步荧光和三维荧光光谱,研究了pH=7.40条件下纳米ZnS与明胶蛋白质的相互作用。FT-IR光谱表明,ZnS与明胶中酰胺基的氮和氧原子及羧基氧可能发生键合生成了水溶性ZnS/明胶纳米生物复合物;ZnS与明胶的键合对明胶分子的内源荧光有明显的猝灭作用,其猝灭机制为静态猝灭。根据修正的Scatchard方程计算了不同温度下复合物的生成常数及反应热力学参数,结果表明反应是自发进行的吸热过程,且为熵驱动。同步荧光和三维荧光光谱表明纳米ZnS引起了明胶蛋白质构象的改变。研究结果为探究此类纳米生物复合物的制备及其在生物方面的应用提供了重要信息。     

Fabrication and characterization chitosan/functionalized zinc oxide bionanocomposites and study of their antibacterial activity

This study deals with preparation and evaluation of properties of chitosan/zinc oxide bionanocomposites (CT/ZnO BNCs) with different amounts of modified zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) through ultrasonic irradiation technique. Due to the high surface energy and tendency for agglomeration, the surface ZnO NPs was modified by a coupling agent as 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APS) to form APS–ZnO nanoparticles. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy confirmed that APS was successfully grafted onto the ZnO nanoparticles surface. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed a surface coverage of the coupling molecule of 2.6 wt%. The resulting bionanocomposites were characterized by FTIR spectra, X-ray diffraction patterns, and TGA. The antibacterial activity of bionanocomposite films was tested against gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis) and gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa). The results of CT/ZnO BNCs revealed that the thermal and antibacterial properties obviously improved the presence of ZnO NPs in comparison with the pure CT and that this increase is higher when the NP content increases. Further, it was observed that antibacterial activity of the resulting hybrid biofilms showed somewhat higher for gram-positive bacteria compared to gram-negative bacteria.     

Cellulose Nanocrystals (CNCs) Induced Crystallization of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Super Performing Nanocomposite Films

This study is aimed to explore the properties of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC)/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) composite films with and without 1,2,3,4‐butane tetracarboxylic acid (BTCA), a nontoxic crosslinker. CNC and CNC‐PVA nanocomposite films are prepared using solution‐casting technique. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses show that crosslinking increased the glass transition temperature but reduced the melting temperature and crystallinity. Furthermore, high CNC concentrations in the PVA matrix interfere with PVA crystallinity, whereas in specific ratio between CNC and PVA, two different crystalline structures are observed within the PVA matrix. Film surfaces and fracture topographies characterized using scanning electron microscope indicate that at certain CNC‐PVA ratios, micron‐sized needle‐like crystals have formed. These crystalline structures correlate with the remarkable improvement in mechanical properties of the CNC‐PVA nanocomposite films, that is, enhanced tensile strain and toughness to 570% and 202 MJ m^?3, respectively, as compared to pristine PVA. BTCA enhances the tensile strain, ultimate tensile stress, toughness, and modulus of CNC films compared to pristine CNC films. Water absorption of crosslinked CNC and CNC‐PVA nanocomposite films is significantly reduced, while film transparency is significantly improved as a function of PVA and crosslinker content. The presented results indicate that CNC‐PVA nanocomposite films may find applications in packaging, and though materials applications.     

Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Isolation of Cellulose Nanofibre and Enhancement Properties in Biopolymer Composites

The physical properties, such as the fibre dimension and crystallinity, of cellulose nanofibre (CNF) are significant to its functional reinforcement ability in composites. This study used supercritical carbon dioxide as a fibre bundle defibrillation pretreatment for the isolation of CNF from bamboo, in order to enhance its physical properties. The isolated CNF was characterised through zeta potential, TEM, XRD, and FT-IR analysis. Commercial CNF was used as a reference to evaluate the effectiveness of the method. The physical, mechanical, thermal, and wettability properties of the bamboo and commercial CNF-reinforced PLA/chitin were also analysed. The TEM and FT-IR results showed the successful isolation of CNF from bamboo using this method, with good colloidal stability shown by the zeta potential results. The properties of the isolated bamboo CNF were similar to the commercial type. However, the fibre diameter distribution and the crystallinity index significantly differed between the bamboo and the commercial CNF. The bamboo CNF had a smaller fibre size and a higher crystallinity index than the commercial CNF. The results from the CNF-reinforced biocomposite showed that the physical, mechanical, thermal, and wettability properties were significantly different due to the variations in their fibre sizes and crystallinity indices. The properties of bamboo CNF biocomposites were significantly better than those of commercial CNF biocomposites. This indicates that the physical properties (fibre size and crystallinity) of an isolated CNF significantly affect its reinforcement ability in biocomposites. The physical properties of isolated CNFs are partly dependent on their source and production method, among other factors. These composites can be used for various industrial applications, including packaging.     

Gelatin Reinforced with CNCs as Nanocomposite Matrix for Trichoderma harzianum KUEN 1585 Spores in Seed Coatings

Increasing interest on sustainable agriculture has led to the development of new materials which can be used as seed coating agents. In this study, a new material was developed based on gelatin film reinforced with cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) which was further used as nanocomposite matrix for Trichoderma harzianum KUEN 1585 spores. The nanocomposite films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), showing the formation of new hydrogen bonds between the components with a good compatibility between them. Measurements of water contact angles and tests of water vapor sorption and swelling degree revealed an improvement in the water vapor absorption properties of the films as a result of their reinforcement with CNC. Furthermore, by adding the Trichoderma harzianum KUEN 1585 spp. in the seed coating material, the germination percentage, speed of germination and roots length of the corn seeds improved. The polymeric coating did not inhibit the growth of T. harzianum KUEN 1585, with this material being a good candidate in modern agriculture.     

Fibroin-functionalized magnetic carbon nanotube as a green support for anchoring silver nanoparticles as a biocatalyst for A3 coupling reaction

Novel and powerful fibroin-functionalized magnetic carbon nanotube–supported silver nanoparticles (CNT–Fe₃O₄–fibroin–Ag) were successfully synthesized as a nontoxic and inexpensive biocatalyst. The structure of the organic–inorganic hybrid bionanocomposite was characterized by various techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray, field emission-scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, vibrating sample magnetometry, atomic absorption spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry. Then, the catalytic activity of synthesized bionanocomposite was evaluated in the three-component A³ coupling reaction under solvent-free conditions with good to excellent yields. Several propargylamine derivatives were synthesized by the reaction of different aldehydes with amines and phenylacetylene. Biodegradability, biocompatibility, availability, easy synthesis, high stability, high-throughput, cost-effectiveness, and efficient magnetic separation are some advantages of this catalyst that make it economically justified and sustainable. Moreover, the catalyst can be recycled for several runs without appreciable loss in its catalytic activity.