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Abstracts, 5-6 March 2014, Bangor

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Scientific Programme and

Book of Abstracts

Workshop

Science and uses of

nanocellulose &

Cellulose foams and

films

March 5-6, 2014

Biocomposites Centre, Bangor, UK


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Edited by: sa stlund, Emma stmark and Dennis Jones SP Wood Technology SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden Drottning Kristinas vg 67 SE-114 28 Stockholm, Sweden www.sp.se

ISBN: 978-91-87461-58-3


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Scientific

Programme


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Day 1. Wednesday 5th

March 2014

09:00 Registration

09:30 sa stlund (SP, SE) and Graham Ormondroyd (BC, UK) Welcome and introduction

Dennis Jones (SP, SE)

Brief overview of open calls in Horizon 2020

KEYNOTE LECTURE

10:00 Derek Gray (McGill University, Canada) Nanocellulosic materials

11:00 Coffee

SESSION 1: ORAL PRESENTATIONS

Industrial potential

11:30 Stefan Veigel (BOKU, AT) Application potential of nanocellulose in the wood industry

11:50 Sara di Lonardo (National Research Council, Institute of Biometereology, IT) Cellulosic neglected materials as potential resources for local industries

12:10 Magnus Gimker (Innventia, SE) Production of MFC and its uses at Innventia

12:30 Lunch

SESSION 1 (continued): ORAL PRESENTATIONS

14:00 Jos Alberto Mndez (Univ Girona LEPAMAP, ES) LEPAMAP group research lines

14:20 Fabiola Vilaseca (Univ Girona LEPAMAP, ES) Use of NFC in papermaking applications

http://www.bc.bangor.ac.uk/http://www.bc.bangor.ac.uk/http://www.bc.bangor.ac.uk/


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POSTER PRESENTATIONS

14:40 Poster presentations are listed on the last page

15:15 Coffee and Posters


Environmental evaluations

16:00 Giovanni Emiliani (National Research Council, Institute of Biometereology, IT) Influence of genotype and environmental variables in determining the physico-chemical

properties of lignocelllulosic material derived from cultivated trees

16:20 Janka Dibdiakova (Skog og Landskap, NO) LCA from the point of view of comparing a regenerated cellulose fibre with a textile fibre

16:40 Callum Hill (JCH Industrial Ecology, UK) Environmental impacts associated with regenerated cellulose products

17:00 End of Day 1

19:00 Drinks reception and poster session

20:00 Conference Dinner

Day 2. Thursday 6th

March 2014

08:45 Arrival and coffee


Modification and microstructure

09:15 Jesus Ambrosio-Martin (IATA-CSIC ES) Melt polycondensation to improve the dispersion of bacterial cellulose into polylactide via

melt compounding. Enhancing barrier and mechanical properties

09:35 Elena Vismara (Politecnico di Milano, IT) Glycidylmethacrylate Cellulose-based Nanosponge: a Forecast for Glycidylmethacrylate

Nanocellulose Preparation and Use?

09:55 Samuel Eyley (KU Leuven, BE) A simple one-pot route to cationic cellulose nanocrystals

10:15 Yuval Nevo (The Hebrew College of Jerusalem, IL): Nanocrystalline

cellulose/nanoparticles (NCC/NPs); Light tunable reinforced plastic sheets

10:35 Coffee and Posters

ORAL PRESENTATIONS

11:15 National Presentations

11:45 Open discussion on calls in Horizon 2020, defining areas of weakness

Future meetings focus themes, venues etc.

12:30 End of Workshop

Lunch

MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING

Limited to registered national MC members and substitutes

14:00 sa stlund (SP, SE), Wim Thielemans (KU Leuven, BE) and Dennis Jones (SP, SE) MC3 meeting (agenda to be sent to MC members separately)

15:30

approx End of meeting

Coffee

Departure


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Poster presentations

Christos Nitsos (Aristotle Univ, EL): Methods for selective fragmentation of lignocellulosic

wastes and production of (nano)cellulose with improved valorization potential

Arnis Treimanis (Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, LV): Preparation and

Characterisation of Bacterial NanoCellulose

Miriam Ribul (Chelsea College of Art and Design, UK): Design possibilities in regenerated

cellulose materials (STSM presentation)

Hanna de la Motte (SP, SE): Increased reactivity and new applications for recycled cotton

textiles by controlled characterization

Vanja Kokol (Univ. Maribor, SI): The effect of nanocellulose on mechanical and barrier

properties of soy-protein plasticized multi-layer films

Anders Thygesen (DTU, DK): Fungal defibration of hemp fibres for cellulose isolation (STSM

presentation)

Natalia Quijorna Kyburz (University of Cantabria, ES): Simulation and Optimization of

sulfite process to obtain dissolving pulp and valuable products from spent sulfite liquor

Valentina Coccia (Univ. of Perugia, IT)

Cellulose nanocrystals obtained from cynara cardunculus: lab procedure, SEM analysis, and

optical properties

Selestina Gorgieva (Univ. Maribor, SI): The effect of cellulose-nanofibers phosphorylation,

organic solvent content and cryo-parameters on scaffold micro-structuring

Amit Rivkin (The Hebrew College of Jerusalem, IL): A new route towards the insertion of

nano crystalline cellulose into epoxy resins via recombinant proteins and construction of novel

bio-nano-composites

Daniel Hewson (Univ. Exeter, UK): Optical properties of cellulose nanocrystal mesogenic

phases in thin films (STSM presentation)

Tiffany Abitbol (The Hebrew College of Jerusalem, IL): Surface modification of cellulose

nanocrystals with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide

Jeremie Brand (Univ. Bordeaux, FR): Chemical functionalization of cellulose nanocrystals for

photovoltaic applications

Krystyna Ciela (Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, PL): The influence of

ionising radiation on nanocellulose and the biodegradable films containing nanocellulose

Tim Liebert (Univ of Jena, DE): Studies on the tosylation of cellulose in mixtures of ionic

liquids and a co-solvent

Stephen Eichhorn (Univ. Exeter, UK): Structural colour using cellulose nanofibres

Kay Hettrich (Fraunhofer Inst., DE): Preparation and characterization of nano-cellulose

Nir Peer (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem IL): Robust biodegradable optically tunable

NCC sheets

Zeki Candan (Istanbul University, TU): Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) of

nanocellulose reinforced urea-formaldehyde resin


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Participants List


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Name Affiliation Country Email

Bruno Andersons Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry Latvia [email protected]

Thomas Rosenau Universitt fr Bodenkultur Austria [email protected]

Stefan Veigel Universitt fr Bodenkultur Austria [email protected]

Wim Thielemans K.U. Leuven Belgium [email protected]

Samuel Eyley K.U. Leuven Belgium [email protected]

Derek Gray McGill University Canada [email protected]

Anders Thygesen Danish Technical University Denmark [email protected]

Anand Ramesh Sanadi University of Copenhagen Denmark [email protected]

Soren Barberg University of Copenhagen Denmark [email protected]

Pedro Fardim bo Akademi University Finland [email protected]

Jeremie Brand University of Bordeaux France [email protected]

Gilles Sebe University of Bordeaux France [email protected]

Patrick Navard Mines ParisTech France [email protected]

Kay Hettrich Fraunhofer-Institut Germany [email protected]

Tim Liebert Friedrich Schiller Universitt Jena Germany [email protected]

Christos Nitsos Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Greece [email protected]

Emilia Csiszar Budapest University of Technology and Economics Hungary [email protected]

Witold Kwapinski University of Limerick Ireland [email protected]

Tiffany Abitbol The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel [email protected]

Doron Kam The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel [email protected]

Sigal Meirovitch Valentis Nanotech Ltd Israel [email protected]

Yuval Nevo The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel [email protected]

Nir Peer The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel [email protected]

Amit Rivkin The Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israel [email protected]

Valentina Coccia University of Perugia Italy [email protected]

Sara di Lonardo CNR IVALSA Italy [email protected]

Elena Vismara Politecnico di Milano Italy [email protected]

Giovanni Emiliani CNR IVALSA Italy [email protected]

Elisabetta Feci CNR IVALSA Italy [email protected]

Arnis Tremainis Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry Latvia [email protected]

Janka Dibdiakova Skog og Landskap Norway [email protected]

Grzegorz Kowaluk Warsaw University of Life Sciences Poland [email protected]

Krystyna Ciela Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology Poland [email protected]

Carmen-Mihaela Popescu "Petru Poni" Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry Romania [email protected]

Maria Cristina Popescu "Petru Poni" Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry Romania [email protected]

Alena Siskova Polymer Institute, Slovak Academy of Sciences Slovakia [email protected]

Selestina Gorgieva University of Maribor Slovenia [email protected]

Vanja Kokol University of Maribor Slovenia [email protected]

Primoz Oven University of Ljubljana Slovenia [email protected]

Fabiola Vilaseca University of Girona Spain [email protected]

Jos Alberto MNDEZ University of Girona Spain [email protected]

Jesus Ambrosio-Martin IATA-CSIC Spain [email protected]

Amparo Lopez-Rubio IATA-CSIC Spain [email protected]

Natalia Quijorna University of Cantabria Spain [email protected]

Hanna de la Motte SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden Sweden [email protected]

Magnus Gimker Innventia Sweden [email protected]

sa stlund SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden Sweden [email protected]

Dennis Jones SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden Sweden [email protected]

Philippe Tingaut EMPA [email protected]

Zeki Candan Istanbul University Turkey [email protected]

Daniel Hewson University of Exeter UK [email protected]

Miriam Ribul Chelsea College of Arts UK [email protected]

Callum Hill JCH Industrial Ecology Limited UK [email protected]

Stephen Eichhorn University of Exeter UK [email protected]

Graham Ormondroyd Biocomposites Centre UK [email protected]

Qiuyun Liu Biocomposites Centre UK [email protected]

Simon Curling Biocomposites Centre UK [email protected]

John Flahatey Greenerpol UK [email protected]

Rob Rodnenburg Viscose closures UK [email protected]

Jackie Royall Viscose closures UK [email protected]


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Abstracts


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Day 1. Wednesday 5th of March

Keynote lecture

Nanocellulosic Materials

Derek Gray

Department of Chemistry, McGill University, Canada, e-mail: [email protected]

ABSTRACT

Cellulose, the most abundant material in the biosphere, may be processed to give materials with

one or more dimensions in the nanometer range. The primary interest in these materials is as

reinforcement for polymers and biocomposites, but they display some other interesting

properties. Cellulose nanocrystals (rod-shaped particles of crystalline cellulose I prepared from

natural cellulose fibres) form stable aqueous colloidal suspensions with chiral nematic properties.

These suspensions also display the optical properties of the familiar cholesteric liquid crystals,

but contain up to 95% water. The order observed in the suspensions is maintained when the

water is removed by evaporation, leading to iridescent solid films. Many other applications have

been proposed for this sustainable and green family of materials.


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Session 1: Oral presentations

Application potential of nanocellulose in the wood industry

Stefan Veigel and Wolfgang Gindl-Altmutter

Institute of Wood Science and Technology, BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences

Vienna, Konrad Lorenz Strae 24, 3430 Tulln, Austria. E: [email protected]

Keywords: adhesive bonding, coating, mechanical properties, nanocellulose, reinforcement

ABSTRACT

In wood industry, high volumes of polymers are used in adhesive bonding and coating. Bonding

of solid wood and wood particles is a key issue in the manufacturing of numerous wood products.

A high bonding strength under both static and dynamic loads is one of the most important

requirements a wood-adhesive bond has to fulfil. Aminoplastic adhesives on the basis of urea-

formaldehyde (UF) and melamine-urea-formaldehyde (MUF) which are currently the most

widely used adhesives in wood industry can only partly meet this demand. The high elastic

modulus of cured aminoplastic bondlines induces high stress concentrations within the bondline

which significantly reduce the overall strength of the bonding. In the presented study, cellulose

nanofibers were added to commercial wood adhesives in order to generate a fiber-reinforced

adhesive with a markedly higher ductility and therefore improved bonding strength. Highly

significant positive effects on mechanical bond stability are reported for commonly used UF-

adhesives. It is shown that both solid wood adhesion and wood composite production can profit

from the addition of only a few percent nanocellulose. With regard to wood coating, modern

coating materials must comply with a wide range of requirements. For interior use, the physical

protection of the wood surface (e.g. wear and scratch resistance, surface hardness) is of prime

importance. Due to an increasing environmental and health awareness during the last two

decades, water-based coating systems were prevailing more and more over solvent based

systems. The market share of waterborne wood coatings is expected to further increase due to

increasingly stringent regulations concerning the release of volatile organic compounds (VOC).

Although waterborne systems show good performance in the furniture and flooring industry,

there is a need for further improvement of mechanical coating properties. Therefore, a

preliminary study assessing the feasibility of using cellulose nanofibrils as well as nanocrystals as

an additive for wood coatings was carried out. Nanocellulose was added to a waterborne furniture

varnish in a concentration of up to 2 wt%. It was found that both the rheological properties of the

liquid coating and the physical properties of coated wood surfaces were strongly affected by the

additive. The most obvious improvements were found for scratch resistance, surface modulus and

hardness. Additionally the mechanics of dried waterborne coating films were significantly

improved by fibrillated cellulose. Due to its mechanical reinforcement potential nanocellulose

offers numerous perspectives of application in terms of improved bio-based solutions for existing

materials or in completely new materials.


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Cellulosic neglected materials as a potential resource for local industries

Sara Di Lonardo

Institute of Biometeorology-National Research Council (IBIMET-CNR), Via G. Caproni 8, 50145 Firenze, Italy. E: [email protected]

Keywords: renewable by-products, eco-sustainability, natural fibres.

ABSTRACT

Utilising natural neglected byproducts or waste as sources for natural cellulose is becoming

increasingly necessary due to concerns on both the future price and availability of the natural and

synthetic materials in current use: in addition, problems associated with disposing the byproducts

after harvest could be reduced if these materials are used for industrial applications. Moreover, in

order to reduce the trash collection and disposal fees, new methods and policies for waste

handling and treatment have been recently introduced (Riggi and Avola 2010) to recover, recycle

and convert the by-products and wastes into upgraded products (Federici et al. 2009, Laufenberg

et al. 2003, Rousu et al. 2002).

Among wastes coming from agro-food-textile manufacturing, the fibres represent sizeable and

functional component. In particular natural fibres, such as jute, kenaf, flax, hemp, and agriculture

residues including stalks of most crops, are becoming very attractive as reinforcing fibres of

biocomposites. Natural fibres coming from wastes of agro-food industries manufacturing

companies provide environmental and technological profits when used to reinforce composites

both in terms of high strength and stiffness performance in low density materials, and in terms of

positive environmental impact (Lopez et al. 2012, Uma Devi et al. 2004).

In this context, IBIMET-CNR is working with natural matters from terrestrial/agricultural and

marine environment to characterise these materials for industrial uses. The characterisation of the

available cellulosic neglected byproducts or waste finalised to technical uses was the first step.

The work has been focused on material derived by nettle, broom, hop, Artemisia, Stevia and

Posidonia, all plant used for different purposes or present in Tuscany Region (Italy).

REFERENCES

Federici, F., Fava, F., Kalogerakis, N., and Mantzavinosc, D. (2009) Valorisation of agro-

industrial by-products, effluents and waste: concept, opportunities and the case of olive mill

wastewaters. Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, 84, 895-900.

Laufenberg, G., Kunz, B., and Nystroem, M. (2003) Transformation of vegetable waste into

value added products: (A) the upgrading concept; (B) practical implementations. Bioresource

Technology, 87, 167-198.


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Lopez, J.P., Vilaseca, F., Barber, L., Bayer, R.J., Plach, M.A., and Mutj, P. (2012) Processing

and properties of biodegradable composites based on Mater-Bi and hemp core fibres.

Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 59, 38-42.

Riggi, E. and Avola, G. (2010) Quantification of the waste stream from fresh tomato

packinghouses and its fluctuations: Implications for waste management planning. Resources,

Conservation and Recycling, 54, 436-441.

Rousu, P., Rousu, P., and Anttila, J. (2002) Sustainable pulp production from agricultural waste.

Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 35, 85-103.

Uma Devi, L., Kuruvila, J., Manikandan Nair, K.C., and Sabu, T. (2004) Ageing studies of

pineapple leaf fiberreinforced polyester composites. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 94,

503-510.


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Production of MFC and its uses at Innventia

Magnus Gimker

Innventia AB, Drottning Kristinas vg 61 Stockholm, Sweden E: [email protected]

Keywords: renewable by-products, eco-sustainability, natural fibres.

ABSTRACT

In 2011, Innventia opened the world's first pilot plant for the production of nanocellulose, which

has a capacity of 100 kg/day. The facility (Figure 1) makes it possible to produce nanocellulose

on a large scale for the first time and is an important step towards the industrialisation of this

technology. Having the capability to produce larger volumes means it is now possible to study

the use of nanocellulose in applications that demand significant amounts of material.

The pilot facility's connection to the existing pilot-scale processing equipment at Innventia,

which includes screens, refiners, fractionation equipment, not to mention a paper machine, makes

it a unique testing and production unit. It provides exceptional resources to work towards the

commercialisation of nanocellulose applications.

Figure 1: Production facilities at Innventia


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LEPAMAP group. Research lines

Jos Alberto Mndez, Fabiola Vilaseca, M. ngels Plach, Josep Puig, Pere Mutj

LEPAMAP group. University of Girona. EPS, building PI, C/. Maria Aurlia Capmany 61, 17071, Girona,

Spain. E: [email protected]

Keywords: Bacterial celllulose, cellulose reinforced composites, lignin, nanopaper, NFC, physical-chemical characterisation

ABSTRACT

The LEPAMAP group of the University of Girona is a multidisciplinary research group based on

chemists, biologists and engineers, focusing their research work in materials science based on

lignocellulose. This research is performed in 10 laboratories or units as showed in the following

table.

L-1, Laboratory of chemistry and technology of fibrous materials

L-2, Laboratory of nanopaper

L-3, Laboratory of secondary fibres

L-4, Laboratory of paper biotechnology and nanotechnology

L-5, Laboratory of all lignocellulosic composites

L-6, Laboratory of composite materials

L-7, Laboratory of chemical and biochemical technology

L-8, Laboratory of assays

L-9, Laboratory of life cycle analysis

L-10, Laboratory of food contact

Our research lines include from the acquisition and characterisation of the raw material

(hard/softwood, annual plant, agroforest residues, recycled paper, mechanical pulp) until the

application of the fibres (micro and nano scale), passing through the processing of NFC and

biobiting and the incorporation of the fibres inside the substrate (mainly thermoplastic polymer

matrices and paper). - (L-1) (R.R*.: Neus Pellicer) The raw materials, mainly agroforestal residues, are processed by

different ways in order to obtain lignocellulosic pulps with high yield (80% or higher) using

different chemical approaches. The pulps are characterised to determine the chemical properties

and the properties of the derived papers. This unit also provides fibres to units L-4, L-5, L-6 and

L-7.


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- (L-2) (R.R. Pere Mutj) Fabrication of nanopaper and hybrids. Nanopaper is considered a paper

with a NFC content higher than 50 %wt. Hybrids are obtained by incorporation of virgin

cellulose fibres, refined or non-refined, depending on the application. L-2 also produces modified

nanopapers with special properties: electrical, magnetical, antimicrobial and others, by

incorporation of specific components: nanotubs, metallic particles, nanocarbonates and peptides.

The material is provided by L-4 and L-7.

- (L-3) (R.R.: M.A. Plach) Production of lignocellulose fibres from recycled paper, friendlier

with the environment. This research is justified by the increasing percentage of recycled fibres in

new paper products (more than 50% wt).

- (L-4) (R.R.: Pere Mutj) Fabrication of papers by means of alternative techniques: Bulk

modification (NFC incorporation and biobiting), increase of their mineral content and surface

treatment (NFC and nanofillers, dry-strength agents). - (L-5) (R.R.: Gerard Arbat) Development of all lignocellulosic materials by using just own

lignin, coming from agroforestal residues (mainly cereal straws), as bioadhesive. To improve of

mechanical properties, the materials are modified with kraft lignin and NFC produced in L-7. The

production is based on a wet procedure and thermoconforming.

- (L-6) (R.R.: Xavier Espinach/Fernando Julin) Development of composite materials

reinforced/loaded with lignocellulosic fibres (strands, wood fibres, agroforestal residues, wood

dust and mineral reinforcements). This reinforcement is incorporated into thermoplastic

biodegradable and non-biodegradable polymer matrices. The processing is based on a kinetic

mixing process and transformation by injection-moulding or extrusion. This unit also includes the

characterisation of the obtained materials as well as its valorisation in a final piece by "rapid

prototyping".

- (L-7) (R.R.: Fabiola Vilaseca/Jos Alberto Mndez) (L-7.1) Production and characterisation of

NFC coming from wood fibres, annual plants and agroforestal residues. NFC produced in this

unit acts as raw material in L-2, L-4 and L-5. (L-7.2) Production of bacterial cellulose. Coming soon: Chemical modification of NFC for specific applications and valorisation as

biomaterials for biomedical applications. This unit also acts a laboratory of microscale for nanopaper production prior to L-2 up-scaling.

- (L-8) (R.R.: Manel Alcal/M. ngels Plach) Laboratory of physical-chemical assays:

mechanical, optical, electrical and magnetical properties. Moreover characterisation of specific

properties: barrier and antibacterial properties, water uptake and thermal and acoustic isolation. - (L-9) (R.R.: Marc Delgado-Aguilar/X Espinach/Joan Pujol) Unit of life cycle analysis of the

produced materials, comparing it with that of those of existing materials in the market. - (L-10) (R.R.: Josep Puig) Laboratory of food contact focused in the characterisation of paper

products to be used in contact with aliments. Resuming, LEPAMAP group is a fully integrated research group to tackle the exploitation of the

countless possibilities of use of cellulose, from a micro as well as nano point of view.

*R.R.: Responsible researcher.


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Use of NFC in papermaking applications

Gonzlez, I.; Alcal, M.; Plach, M.A.; Vilaseca, F.; Mutj, P.

LEPAMAP Group, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, University of Girona, C/ M. Aurlia Capmany, 61, 17071 Girona (Spain)

During the coming years, paper industry will need to implement different strategies in order to

prevent the use of large amounts of virgin cellulosic fiber, for the sake of saving forest resources.

According to recent literature, the forthcoming strategies will be mainly to convert recycling a

central part of paper activities, the diminishing of basis weight of paper-based products, and the

major use of fillers instead of fiber content in the paper formulation.

Among these approaches, it is expected that the use of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) will

become a real fact in paper industry. NFC can be applied in bulk during paper production or on

paper surface at the last steps of papermaking. The addition of NFC as component of paper

formulation, intended to enlarge paper strength, has to be done at moderate levels otherwise the

drainage of the suspension is hindered, and so the runnability during paper production. In order to

overcome this problem, some alternatives can be employed, such as the use of biobeating

followed by the addition of minor amounts of NFC in the formulation. This procedure has given

out reasonable results when applied to bleached hardwood and softwood pulps, as well as to

secondary fibers or to fibers from agricultural residues. Another possibility is related to the use of

NFC on paper surface as dry strengthening agent. For this purpose, porous paper structures seem

to favor the effect of NFC.

In this work, several alternatives are proposed as substitutes of classic mechanical beating.

Therefore, increasing amounts of NFC has been applied to non-beating fiber substrates. The

paper strength of the paper was improved, and the drainability of the suspension was controlled

following different options. It was demonstrated that mechanical beating can be partly replaced,

and that this prevents the energy consumption during papermaking as well as the damaging of

cellulose fibers, which is a very important aspect especially when they are submitted to

subsequent recycling loops.


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Poster presentations

Methods for selective fragmentation of lignocellulosic wastes and production of (nano) cellulose with improved valorization potential

Christos Nitsos, Konstantinos Matis, Konstantinos Triantafyllidis*

Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, E-mail:[email protected]

Keywords: fractionation, hydrothermal, lignocellulose, (nano)cellulose, products,

ABSTRACT

Lignocellulosic biomass has been envisaged as an alternative and sustainable feedstock for the

production of energy, chemicals, and materials through processes that can supplement or replace

the typical petrochemical refinery. The development of efficient and selective methods for the

separation of the three major biomass components is necessary for the creation of product

streams of added value.

In the current work we have applied a hydrothermal biomass treatment method, performed in a

batch autoclave reactor at relatively conditions. Temperatures up to 220 oC and times up to 180

min were employed. Around 40 wt% of the biomass components can be solubilised in this

manner with the majority being hemicellulose, with cellulose and lignin being only slightly

affected by the pretreatment at these conditions. This enables the selective removal of

hemicellulose from the biomass and its subsequent recovery in the process liquids in the form of

mainly xylose and xylan oligosaccharides. A maximum yield of 60 wt% xylan can be achieved in

this manner at a logRo (severity factor combining the effect of temperature and time of the

hydrothermal process) value of 3.81 (i.e. 190 oC, 15min). The formation of dehydration products,

such as furfural and HMF is kept relatively low at these conditions.

The physicochemical properties of biomass are also greatly affected by the hydrothermal

treatment process. As can be seen in Table 1 the crystallinity of the material is increased from

74% in the pristine biomass to as high as 88% in the hydrothermally treated samples (resembling

that of the commercial cellulose sample-Avicel) due to the removal of the more amorphous

hemicellulose. Both the porosity and external surface area of the biomass are also increased by a

factor of around 2.5 due to the removal of material from the solid biomass particles.

Table 1: Physicochemical characteristics of pristine biomass and selected hydrothermally treated solid

samples. Commercial microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel) values presented for comparison reasons

Sample Crystallinity

Index

(%)

Specific

Surface Area

(m2

g-1

)

Total Pore

Volume

(cm3

g-1

)

Pristine biomass 74.1 0.59 0.005

190 o

C - 15min 88.1 1.34 0.012

220 o

C - 15min 88.4 1.54 0.010

Avicel* 91.5 0.93 0.006

*Microcrystalline cellulose


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Although lignin stays largely in the solid biomass particle, it is both chemically and structurally

affected by the hydrothermal process. More specifically a portion of lignin is removed from the

elementary fibril and is relocated on the biomass surface, via sequential hydrolysis and

recondensation reactions (Figure 1)

Figure 1: Photos and SEM images of lignocellulosic biomass after hydrothermal treatment, and after selective

removal of lignin with organic solvents.

This lignin can be selectively and easily removed from the hydrothermally treated biomass via a

mild solvent extraction process, recovered and used as a source of phenolic molecules. The

extraction efficiency of lignin is related to the type of organic solvent used and can lead to an

increase in the cellulose content of the remaining biomass particles as high as 95%. These

purified particles have increased amenability to enzymatic digestion compared to the pristine

biomass or the hydrothermally treated solids. In addition, due to the various physical-chemical

treatment steps the resulting (nano)cellulose exhibits improved morphological and textural

characteristics for its use as polymer (nano)filler or as organic template for the formation of

hybrid inorganic (ca. silica) - organic hydrid meso/macrostructures and finally of the respective

high surface meso/macroporous silicas with hierarchical porosity and potential application as

adsorptive or catalytic materials.

REFERENCES

Gomez, L.D., Steele-King, C.G.and McQueen-Mason, S.J., (2008) Sustainable liquid biofuels

from biomass: the writing's on the walls. New Phytologist, 178(3), 473.

Garrote, G., Dominguez, H., and Parajo, J.C., (1999) Hydrothermal processing of lignocellulosic

materials. Holz als Roh- und Werkstoff, 57(3), 191.


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Preparation and Characterisation of Bacterial NanoCellulose

Arnis Treimanis, Lubova Belkova, Rita Treimane*, Laura Vikele, Inese Sable, Marite Skute

Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, 27 Dzerbenes Street, Riga LV-1006, Latvia

*Latvia University, Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology, 4 Kronvalda bulv., Riga LV-1010, Latvia. E: [email protected]

Keywords: Bacterial cellulose, films, FTIR spectroscopy,mechanical properties, nanocellulose, microscopy.

ABSTRACT

Bacterial cellulose BC is an emerging nanomaterial with unique properties. Bacterial cellulose is

an exopolysaccharide produced by genera Komagataeibacter (previously known as

Gluconabacter). In contrast to the microfibrillated cellulose MFC bacterial cellulose is not

produced from existing cellulose by chemical or mechanical methods. Microfibrillar structure of

BC is responsible for most of its properties such as high tensile strength, degree of

polymerisation and crystallinity degree (Gamma, Gatenholm and Klemm 2012). It possess also

good biological affinity.

BC was produced by Komagataeibacter hansenii strain isolated from Kombucha symbiotic

association. The basic growth medium used for the strain was Hestrin and Schramm medium

which consisted of glucose, peptone, yeast extract, phosphate and citric acid. The cultures were

grown at 30 oC for 7 days. The cellulose had to be purified by treatment with alkali.

This time the samples of BC were prepared in the form of thin films with thickness 40-400 m.

Drying was performed by solvent exchange water methanol - hexane. The fibrils were strictly

oriented in lamellas while different lamella could differ among themselves in terms of fibrils

orientation. Fibril length was estimated to be 150 m, fibril width 100150 nm. The tensile

strength index of the obtained BC films was found to be between 176 and 240 Nm/g. The films

tensile strength values evidently depended on the fibril direction.

The swelling degree and water uptake indices of the BC films were rather high. These parameters

reached 655 850%. For comparison, wood pulp fibres have reached the water uptake (WRV)

values around 140%. It is remarkable that the water uptake ability increased with extending time.

FTIR spectra of the samples evidenced that the BC samples possess high cellulose crystallinity

degree. The values are higher as compared to the nanocellulose obtained by thermocatalytic

method and close to that of regenerated cellulose obtained from ionic liquids (Zakaria et al.

2011). The spectra may reveal the residues of bacteria by detecting amide groups.

REFERENCES

Gamma, M., Gatenholm, P., Klemm, D. editors (2012). Bacterial Nanocellulose: A

Sophisticated Multifunctional Material, 304 pages, published by CRC Press.

Zakaria M., et. al. (2011). Preparation of cellulose nanocrystals using an ionic liquid. J. Polym

Environ, 19, 726-731.


21

Cellulose opportunities and applications within the MISTRA Future Fashion program

Hanna de la Motte, Miriam Ribul

Applied Surface Chemistry, Chalmers University of Technology, Kemivagen 10, 412 96 Goteborg, Sweden. E: [email protected]

SP Tr, SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden, Box 857, 501 15 Boras, Sweden. E: [email protected]

TED Research, Chelsea College of Arts, University of the Arts London, 16 John Islip Street, London SW1P 4RJ, United Kingdom. E: [email protected]

Keywords: applications, cellulose, cotton, design, fashion, interdisciplinary, recycling

ABSTRACT

The MISTRA Future Fashion Program is an international consortium of eight research projects

that each contribute with their knowledge towards a more sustainable and globally competitive

Swedish Fashion Industry. The projects combine leading Swedish and international research

institutes and universities with other stakeholders from governmental agencies, voluntary

organizations, and companies within the whole textile value chain: forestry; pulping; textile

manufacturing; recycling. It also aims to build up a national platform for research within

sustainable fashion that includes business, government and civil society.

Figure 1: Cellulosic future fashion opportunities mapped in a shirt (Drawing: Hanna de la Motte, Miriam

Ribul)

One of the research strands within MISTRA Future Fashion is to investigate and develop

chemical recycling possibilities of cellulosic fibres. Three on-going projects linked to this

development within MISTRA Future Fashion are presented here.

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


22

Ageing and hornification of cellulose in cotton textiles during long time use

In order to develop processes to recycle cotton into dissolving pulp and regenerated cellulosic

fibers, basic knowledge of changes induced by the use phase are necessary. In this project, four

cotton sheets laundered different number of times (0, 2-4, approx. 50, >50) were investigated in

order to gain more understanding of how the use and laundering affects chemical and physical

properties of the fibre.

Figure 2: Schematic picture of the cotton laundering study (Drawing: Anna Palme)

The work is a PhD project included in the MISTRA Future Fashion research project 5 (P5):

Reuse, recycling and End of life issues. P5 develops methods for chemical recycling of post-

consumer waste into new strong textile fibers for fashion.

Design possibilities in regenerated cellulose materials The aim of the short term scientific mission is to map possible leads and developments of

scenarios for tangible prototypes for future design applications of regenerated cellulose fibres.

The insights into the tools and processes applied in the lab for the regeneration of cellulose

materials are being developed into a small science-design project within a short period of time.

Scoping, reflection, mapping and development of the final design are informed by hands-on

applications of the research ideas in the lab.

The interdisciplinary project is a Short Term Scientific Mission (STSM) funded by COST

FP1205. The outcomes are the result of the collaboration between an early-career design

researcher from Project 3 within MISTRA Future Fashion with a technical scientist from Project

5 at SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden and Chalmers University of Technology.

Increased reactivity and applications for recycled cotton

The objective of the research is to develop methods that convert used cotton textiles into new

valuable fibers and materials. The project focuses on electrochemical oxidation of cellulose to

increase its reactivity and facilitate production of new materials. By oxidation, cellulose fibers

can be provided with better fibrillation, cross-linking properties or increased solubility, which are

interesting features for better recovery systems and longer life cycles. A secondary objective of

the project is to investigate ionic liquids as electrolytes for the electrochemical oxidation of

cellulose.

The project is a Formas Mobility Starting Grant for Young Researchers. In the project, SP Wood

Technology collaborates with Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Natural

Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna.


23

The effect of nanocellulose on mechanical and barrier properties of soy-protein plasticized multi-layer film

Mojca Boi, Majeri Martina, Vera Vivo, Vanja Kokol

University of Maribor, Institute for Engineering Materials and Design, Smetanova ul. 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia. [email protected]

Keywords: soy-protein, nanocellulose, multi-layer film, compression molding.

ABSTRACT

There are a number of drivers that are fuelling the growth in the bio-packaging market, from

recent technological advances are helping to bring down their cost and expand their range of

properties, to the need to move away from petrochemical based materials and steer the plastics

industry down to a more sustainable route. Bio-renewable polymers derived from pure feedstock

represents an ecologically-friendly, biodegradable, cheap and compostable alternative. However,

in terms of competing with many standard packaging materials, the properties are still not

sufficient for certain applications. There is undoubtedly a gap in the market for biopackaging

(non-paper and above all paper-based) that possesses good barrier (oxygen and water-vapor

transition) and thermo-mechanical properties as well as suitable process-ability (thermoplastic

behavior).

In this contribution it will be presented few strategies for producing of highly-performed rigid or

flexible biopackaging materials being fabricated as mono- or multi-layers films by using

renewable biopolymers (soy protein), nontoxic and non-volatile linear or branched additives

(acting as plasticiser and/or crosslinking agents) and differently prepared nano-cellulose, using

casting and/or compression molding technique.

Acknowledgement. The research leading to these results has been co-funded from the European

Union's 7th Framework Program under the grand agreement NMP4-LA-2012-280759 and the

acronym NanoBarrier.

mailto:[email protected]


24

Fungal defibration of hemp fibres for cellulose isolation

Anders Thygesen*, Ming Liu*, Geoffrey Daniel** and Anne S. Meyer*

*Center for Bioprocess Engineering, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Lyngby, Denmark.

**Department of Forest Products/Wood Science, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 750-07, Uppsala, Sweden.

Keywords: Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, Phlebia radiata Cel 26, cellulose isolation, pectin.

ABSTRACT

Cellulosic fibres are of interest as fibre source for production of textiles and for sustainable

reinforcement of composite materials. Defibration by microbial, techniques is needed for

isolation of the fibres. White rot fungi without the ability to degrade cellulose have a potential for

defibration of plant fibres since these fungi can penetrate the fibre structure and thereby separate

the fibres. Hemp fibres (Cannabis sativa L) are chosen as fibre source since they are rich in

cellulose and have high strength. Two fungi were tested by cultivation tests under semidry

fermentation. These fungi include Ceriphoriopsis subvermispora and Phlebia radiata Cel 26,

which can decompose pectin and lignin and leaves the cellulose intact.

The cultivation is shown in Figure 1. An even colonisation by the fungus was obtained both

below and above the water surface. Based on chemical composition, P. radiata Cel 26 showed

the highest selectivity for pectin and lignin degradation and lowest cellulose loss (14%) resulting

in the highest cellulose content (78.4%) for the treated hemp fibres. The pectin and lignin

removal after treatment with P. radiata Cel 26 were of the order 82% and 50%, respectively.

Figure 1: Cultivation of Ceriphoriopsis subvermispora (middle) and Phlebia radiata Cel 26 (right) on hemp

stem pieces in 1 L flasks with an abiotic control blank (left).


25

Simulation and Optimization of sulfite process to obtain dissolving pulp and valuable products from spent sulfite liquor

N. Quijorna, C. Rueda, T. Llano, A. Andrs, B. Galn, G. Ruiz, J.R. Viguri, A. Coz*

Chemistry and Processes & Resources Engineering Department. Green Engineering and Resources Research Group www.geruc.es, University of Cantabria, Santander (Cantabria), Spain.

ETSIIyT. Avda. de los Castros s/n 39005 Santander. SPAIN e-mail: [email protected]

Keywords: dissolving pulp; optimisation; simulation; spent sulfite liquor; valorisation.

ABSTRACT

The acid sulfite process produces dissolving pulp, a pulp with high cellulose content, used in the

manufacture of textile fibres. Nowadays the demand of dissolving pulp is increasing giving a

more added value pulp. Furthermore, the expansion of the paper grade industries to the

production of dissolving pulp is growing.

In the digestion step of sulfite process, mainly lignin, but also part of the hemicelluloses and

small amount of cellulose are extracted from the wood chips using salts of bisulfitic acid. The

spent sulfite liquor (SSL), rich in sugars and lignosulfonates is usually burnt in order to use it as

energy. However, this waste stream can be better managed if used as a new raw material to

produce value-added chemicals. For this, pulp and paper (P&P) mills are sources of potential

valorisation related to the Forest Biorefinery concept. Waste and by-products from P&P mills

consist of sugar, acids, lignin-derivatives, hemicelluloses-derivatives and cellulose degradation

by-products and inhibitors of the post-fermentation processes.

In order to obtain a thorough knowledge of the P&P process the study of the main operation

variables and the kinetic study of the main components are being carried out. Three models have

been applied increasing the complexity. The estimation of the kinetic parameters has been done

using Aspen Custom Modeller Software. The future work will be to develop a separately model

for xylose and glucose, the main sugars.

a) b) Figure 1: a) Conversion evolution for decomposition-formation of monosaccharides in model C.

b) Conversion evolution for decomposition of monosaccharides in model C

http://www.geruc.es/


26

The modelling of entire process (Figure 2) is being carried out to integrate the different stages,

not only of digestion process but also the evaporation stage and the whole pulp line by using

Aspen Plus software. The simulation allows not only the study of the influence of input variables

and its effects in the entire process and the output variables, but also, the optimization of the

process to obtain a desirable quality pulp.

Figure 2: Sulfite process for dissolving pulp and spent liquor production.

Simulation models of valuable products of SSL based on Biorefinery concept applied on the

sulfite process can be developed using the software Aspen Plus. These results can show that

valorisation of SSL could be feasible and could offer additional profits to the P&P mill.

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support by KBBE-2012-6-311935 BRIGIT

research project. www.brigit-project.eu.

http://www.brigit-project.eu/


27

Cellulose nanocrystals obtained from cynara cardunculus: lab procedure, SEM analysis, and optical properties

Valentina Coccia, Franco Cotana, Gianluca Cavalaglio, Mattia Gelosia, Enrico Pompili

CIRIAF - CRB Section - University of Perugia, via G. Duranti, 67, 06125 Perugia, Italy. E: [email protected]

Keywords: bio-based product, biorefinery, cellulose nanocrystals, residual biomass, steam explosion.

ABSTRACT

Biorefinery purpose aim at designing new virtuous and high-efficiency energy chains, achieving

the combined production of biofuels (e.g. bioethanol) and biobased products obtained from by-

products and residues.

This contribution will present the lab experience carried out by the Italian Biomass Research

Centre (CRB) in extracting cellulose nano-crystals (NCC) from a pre-treated (via Steam

Explosion) fraction of cynara cardunculus i.e. a very common and abundant residual and invasive

arboreal variety in central Italy.

A parallel experimental programme is ongoing for producing bioethanol from some rurally

available ligno-cellulosic matrices (Cotana et al. 2014).

The NCC extraction methodology consists of a five step protocol allowing the separation of the

nanocrystalline content of cellulose. Such a procedure is literary captured (Oksman et al. 2011,

Pirani and Hashaikeh 2013) with the exception of Step (iv) that is only CRB Lab experienced and

it has been applied for the production of NCC from bio-residual matter (i.e. cynara cardunculus)

and as a baseline comparison from the micro crystalline cellulose (MCC). The main protocol

phases are mentioned as follows: (i) extractives removal from the bioresidue using the Soxhlet

apparatus; (ii) lignin separation from the cellulose component using basic hydrolysis; (iii) the

pulp energy bleaching (Marques et al. 2010) with sodium chlorite at controlled pH; (iv) acid

hydrolysis to deconstruct the cellulose into its two components: the crystalline and the amorphous

one; (v) ultrasound treatment of the solution and quantification NCC content.

In addition, some initial SEM analyses and characterisation measurements of the optical

properties have been carried out on the obtained NCC glass films. Figure 1 is a picture of the

operative Lab work phases.

Figure 2 and Figure 3 show two SEM images of NCC obtained respectively from cynara

cardunculus and from MCC.

Figure1: NCC Lab work phases


28

Figure 2: SEM image of NCC obtained from cynara cardunculus

Figure 3: SEM image of NCC from MCC

REFERENCES

Cotana F., Cavalaglio G., Gelosia M., Nicolini A., Coccia V., Petrozzi A. (2014). Production of

bioethanol in a second generation prototype from pine wood chips. Energy Procedia, 45c, 42-51.

Marques G., Del Ro J.C., Gutirrez A. (2010). Lipophilic extractives from several nonwoody

lignocellulosic crops (flax, hemp, sisal, abaca) and their fate during alkaline pulping and

TCF/ECF bleaching. Bioresource Technology, 101, 260 267.

Oksman, K., Etang, J. A., Mathew A. P., Jonoobi M. (2011). Cellulose nanowhiskers separated

from a bio-residue from wood bioethanol production. Biomass and Bioenergy, 35, 146-152.

Pirani, S., Hashaikeh, R. (2013). Nanocrystalline cellulose extraction process and utilization of

the byproduct for biofuels production. Carbohydrate Polymers, 93, 357 363.


29

The effect of cellulose-nanofibers phosphorylation, organic solvent content and cryo-parameters on scaffold micro-structuring

Selestina Gorgieva and Vanja Kokol

University of Maribor, Institute for Engineering Materials and Design, Smetanova ul. 17, SI-2000 Maribor, Slovenia: [email protected]

Keywords: cellulose nanofibers, cryo-processing, DMSO, porosity, phosphorylation

ABSTRACT

Combining the material porosity with advantages of nano-cellulose as a family of products from

major renewable biomass source, its biodegradability, thermal and chemical stability, effective

conductivity, and finally, the possibility for nano-scale control over the ultimate product

properties, broaden its application range towards emerging technologies, such as pharmaceutical

and biomedical applications, food packaging, thermal and acoustic insulators, gas or liquid

adsorption and permeation, and so-on. However, control over the final (e.g. physico-mechanical)

properties in purpose of reproducibility as key point in manufacturing processes, require

knowledge and control on basic mechanisms, underlying porosity generation and micro-

structuring in a whole.

Presented contribution will demonstrates innovative approach for micro-structural assembling of

cellulose nanofiber (CNF) suspensions into 3D-porous scaffolds. In that respect different effects

on scaffold fabrication will be presented: i) the temperature- and time-controlled uni-directional

freezing or repetitive freeze-thawing processes followed by lyophilisation (Figure 1), ii) the

addition of different DMSO molarities within water-DMSO binary mixtures, acting as CNF

dispersion mediums and freeze-control tool modulating the shape/size of ice-templates formed,

and iii) the use of negatively-charged phosphorylated-CNF affecting the interactions within

dispersion and consequently structuring. The scaffolds will be evaluated relating to the porosity

profile (size and distribution), physical (density and gas permeability) and mechanical

(compressibility) properties, and the correlations with preparation parameters will be drawn up.

Fig. 1: The effect of freezing end-temperature on porosity of air-exposed (upper-row) and Cu-plate-exposed

(lower-row) samples


30

Acknowledgement: This project was supported by Slovenian Ministry of education, science,

culture and sport, under the MNT Era-Net program, the project n-POSSCOG.


31

A New Route Towards the Insertion of Nano Crystalline Cellulose into Epoxy Resins via Recombinant Proteins and Construction of a Novel

Bio-Nano-Composites

Amit Rivkin, Ronen Verker, Oded Shoseyov

Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel

Keywords: Adhesive, Epoxy, Nano crystalline cellulose, Resilin-CBD.

ABSTRACT

Development of high performance bio-nano composite adhesives is of high interest due to their

potentially superior properties and environmental friendly approach. A novel bio-nano composite

presented here is based on Nano Crystalline Cellulose (NCC) and the protein Resilin fused to a

cellulose binding domain (Res.-CBD). Resilin is a robber-like protein and considered to be the

most elastic material in nature. NCC, extracted from cellulose, nature's most abundant polymer

has a tensile strength similar to materials such as aramid fibers. As a case study, commercial

epoxy adhesive was chosen as a matrix for the bio-nano composite adhesives.

Insertion of hydrophilic NCC into hydrophobic resins, such as epoxy, is performed nowadays

using techniques involving NCC solvent exchange, chemical modification, emulsifiers addition

or simple mixing with water born resins which limits the material's application range or

considered environmentally unfriendly.

In this work we present a new approach for the insertion of NCC into an epoxy resin by utilising

the Res.-CBD chemical structure as a surfactant. Our mechanism shows that Res.-CBD binds to

the NCC through its CBD group and covalently reacts with epoxide groups through its amine

moieties, allowing direct NCC insertion into the epoxy resin. The mechanical properties of the

new bio-nano material show an increase of the Young's modulus by 40% and a decrease in the

tan () by 20%, compared to pristine epoxy. This is an indication of higher elasticity of the bio-

nano composite adhesive compared to the pristine epoxy.


32

Optical properties of cellulose nanocrystal mesogenic phases in thin films

Daniel Hewson

University of Exeter, e-mail: [email protected]

ABSTRACT

Cellulose nanostructures have been found to possess remarkable properties that make them ideal

structural components in composite materials and thin films. Cellulose also has the advantage of

being one of the most abundant resources on the planet. Applications of cellulose nanocrystals

extend to medical, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and electronic industries. Chiral nematic cellulose

structures have been shown to possess optical properties expressed as iridescence. As part of the

effort to research the exciting potential of cellulose nanocrystal structures to produce colour, this

work aims to explore their optical properties and the extent to which they can produce structural

colour. Cellulose nanocrystal thin films are unique structures that form by a self-assembly

process, a process that presents itself as an excellent candidate for mimicking the natural

structures found in insects, such as beetles, that produce colour via light interference. This work

will investigate whether colours can be reproduced by optimising and altering cellulose

nanocrystal thin film structures. Through synthesis, functionalization of the surface of cellulose

nanocrystals and characterisation techniques this work will investigate their potential and produce

optically active thin film structures that mimic those found in nature. Such structures will be

applicable to the fashion and product marketing industries. They also have great potential to serve

as anti-counterfeiting measures.


33

Surface modification of cellulose nanocrystals with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide

Tiffany Abitbol, Heera Marway and Emily D. Cranston

McMaster University, Department of Chemical Engineering, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. E: [email protected]

Keywords: cellulose nanocrystals, cationic surfactants, surface modification, surfactant adsorption

ABSTRACT

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) prepared by sulfuric acid hydrolysis of cotton were surface

modified with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), with goals of imparting some

hydrophobic character to the otherwise hydrophilic CNCs via the long alkyl tail of CTAB, and

better understanding the mechanism of cationic surfactant adsorption onto anionic CNC surfaces.

In general, hydrophobic CNCs are relevant for materials and processes where the CNCs need to

be compatible with hydrophobic solvents or polymers. This work was inspired by Salajkov et al.

(2012), who used quaternary ammonium surfactants to hydrophobise carboxylated CNCs.

The sulfuric acid hydrolysis of native cellulose to give CNCs grafts anionic sulphate half ester

groups onto the surfaces of the CNCs. The charged groups impart colloidal stability to aqueous

CNC suspensions through electrostatic repulsion interactions. The approach for the surface

modification of CNCs with a cationic surfactant is straightforward; essentially, the counterions of

the CNC surface sulfate half ester groups are exchanged for the positively charged surfactant, in

this case, for cetyltrimethylammonium (CTA+), which acts as a bulky, amphiphilic cation.

We found that the surface modification could be tailored from 50 to 100% charge coupling

efficiency by varying reaction conditions. The main factor that influenced coupling efficiency

was ionic strength; increasing the ionic strength screened electrostatic interactions between the

CNCs and the cationic surfactant, which led to decreased electrostatic surfactant adsorption.

Additionally, electrostatically adsorbed surfactants were resilient to purification by dialysis,

remaining associated with the CNC surfaces even after extensive washing in both water and

ethanol.

Adsorption isotherms of CTAB on model CNC films, measured by surface plasmon resonance

spectroscopy, indicated an increase in adsorbed surfactant amount with increasing bulk CTAB

concentration without achieving saturation in the concentration range studied. The amount of

CTAB remaining associated with the CNC surfaces after post-adsorption rinsing approached a

similar value for all films, a result which was interpreted to indicate that electrostatically

adsorbed CTAB is more permanently bound to the CNCs compared to cooperatively adsorbed

surfactant.

The CTAB-modified CNCs were not well-dispersed in water but formed stable colloidal

suspensions in ethanol, which transitioned into a continuous gel-like chiral nematic liquid crystal

at relatively low concentrations (~4 wt. %) but did not phase separate into isotropic and


34

anisotropic phases as is seen in suspensions of unmodified CNCs. Figure 1 shows the

birefriengence and chiral nematic self-assembly observed for CTAB modified CNCs (50%

coupling efficiency) dispersed in ethanol.

The particle size and morphology of the CTAB-modified CNCs were unchanged compared to the

native CNCs but were more thermally stable and viscous, and somewhat less hydrophilic after the

surface modification reaction.

Figure 1: CTAB-modified CNCs at 6 wt. % in a sealed microslide viewed between crossed polarisers (a) and

in the polarised microscope (b), and CTA-CNCs-50% at 2 wt. % in a glass vial that was shaken prior to

taking the photograph (c).

REFERENCES

Salajkov, M., Berglund, L.A., Zhou, Q. (2012): Hydrophobic cellulose nanocrystals modified

with quaternary ammonium salts. Journal of Materials Chemistry, 22(37), 19798-19805.


35

Chemical functionalization of cellulose nanocrystals for photovoltaic applications

Jrmie Brand, Frdrique Ham-Pichavant, Vronique Coma, Gilles Sbe*

University of Bordeaux, LCPO, UMR 5629, F-33607, Pessac, France

CNRS, LCPO, UMR 5629, F-33607 Pessac, France

PhD Stu. : [email protected] Supervisor*: [email protected]

Keywords: chemical modification, composite, nanocellulose, transesterification

ABSTRACT

In the current context of sustainability, there is a growing interest in developing novel functional

materials based on sustainable bioresources. Cellulose is one of the principal constituents of

wood and plants and one of the most abundant resources on earth. In nature, the linear chains of

this biopolymer are associated by hydrogen bonding to form a semicrystalline structure where

highly ordered regions (the crystallites) are distributed among disordered domains (the

amorphous phase). These crystallites are nanometer-sized and can be easily recovered by sulfuric

acid treatment, combined with sonication (Habibi et al. 2010). With this treatment, the

amorphous regions of cellulose are hydrolysed and rod-like cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) bearing

anionic sulfate ester groups at their surface are produced. Because of their high specific strength,

modulus and aspect ratio, CNC can significantly improve the mechanical performances of

polymers, at low loading levels, offering opportunities for new high value-added nanocomposite

materials (Habibi et al. 2010, Moon et al. 2011, Tingaut et al. 2013). Improved barrier properties

against oxygen and water have been also reported, as CNC tend to increase the tortuosity of the

diffusion pathway within the composite (Paralikar et al. 2008, Fukuzumi et al. 2009, Svagan et

al. 2009, Belbekhouche et al. 2011).

But to achieve properties improvement, a good interfacial adhesion must be obtained and the

CNC must be homogeneously dispersed in the polymeric matrix, which is non-trivial. Because of

their high surface area and hydrophilic nature, the CNC cannot be easily dispersed in mediums of

low polarity, rendering it difficult to efficiently reinforce most of the classical polymer matrices.

The dispersability of the CNC in such medium can however be improved by surface

functionalisation: chemical functions can be grafted at the surface of the CNC to decrease the

interfacial energy and increase their interaction with molecules of low-polarity (physical or

chemical interactions).

In this context, we envisaged tailoring the surface of CNC by chemical functionalisation, in order

to produce novel nanocomposite coatings for photovoltaic applications. An original

functionalisation method based on transesterification of vinyl esters was particularly investigated

(Sbe et al. 2013) and applied to development of novel CNC-based coatings for solar cells, with

improved mechanical and barrier performances.

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


36

REFERENCES

Belbekhouche, S., Bras, J., Siqueira, G., Chappey, C., Lebrun, L., Khelifi, B., Marais, S.,

Dufresne, A. (2011). Water sorption and gas barrier properties of cellulose whiskers and

microfibrils films. Carbohydrate Polymers, 83, 1740-1748.

Fukuzumi, H., Saito, T., Iwata, T., Kumamoto, Y., Isogai, A. (2009). Transparent and high gas

barrier films of cellulose nanofibers prepared by TEMPO-mediated oxidation.

Biomacromolecules, 10, 162-165.

Habibi, Y., Lucian, A. L. and Orlando J. R. (2010). Cellulose nanocrystals: chemistry, self-

assembly and applications. Chemical Reviews, 110, 6, 3479-3500.

Moon, R.J., Martini, A., Nairn J., Simonsen J., Youngblood, J. (2011). Cellulose nanomaterials

review: structure, properties and nanocomposites. Chemical Society Reviews, 40, 39413994.

Paralikar, S., Simonsen, J., Lombardi J. (2008). Poly(vinyl alcohol)/cellulose nanocrystals barrier

membranes. Journal of Membrane Science, 320, 248-258.

Sbe, G., Ham-Pichavant, F. and Pecastaings, G. (2013). Dispersibility and emulsion-stabilizing

effect of cellulose nanowhiskers esterified by vinyl acetate and vinyl cinnamate.

Biomacromolecules, 14, 2937-2944.

Svagan, A.J., Hedenqvist, M.S., Berglund, L. (2009). Reduced water vapor sorption in cellulose

nanocomposites with starch matrix. Composites Science Technology, 69, 500-506.

Tingaut, P., Zimmermann, T., Sbe, G. (2012). Cellulose nanocrystals and microfibrillated

cellulose as building blocks for the design of hierarchical functional materials. Journal of

Materials Chemistry, 22, 20105-20111.


37

The influence of ionising radiation on nanocellulose and the biodegradable films containing nanocellulose

Krystyna Ciela, Anna Abramowska, Wojciech Guszewski, Marek Buczkowski, Andrzej Nowicki, Grayna Strzelczak

Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, Dorodna 16 str., 03-195 Warsaw, Poland E: [email protected]

Keywords: Nanocrystalline cellulose, ionising radiation, starch-PVA based films

ABSTRACT

Variety of possible application of the cellulose based or cellulose containing composite materials

induces needs for search of the species with a modified properties (the increased or decreased

hydrophilicity, the presence of the appropriate functional groups, etc., in dependence on the

destiny of the final product). Using the cellulose fibres is one of the known possibility for

improvement of the plastics based on the natural as well as on artificial polymers. Recently, it

was also reported that introduction of the nanosized cellulose enable to produce the plastic with

the better properties as compared to those produced using the macro-scale cellulose.

Ionising radiation (gamma or electron) induces chemical and physical changes in polymers

(Ciela, 2009). The processes alike degradation, crosslinking or grafting might be initiated by

irradiation. The advantage of using radiation modification consists on that none initialising agent

is necessary and that it is easy to control the processes by changing the conditions of irradiation.

Accordingly, radiation modification appear to be an alternative perspective methods that might

substitute chemical and enzymatic procedures, applied till now on the industrial scale for

modification of polymers. Using of ionising radiation might be more friendly for environment as

compared to the chemical methods and make possible to reduce the costs of the processes in

relation to the enzymatic methods. Beside, to the possible radiation modification, examination of

radiation effect on polymers appeared interesting in regard to development of the methods of

radiation decontamination and sterilisation causing the necessity for search the radiation-resistant

packaging materials for decontaminated products.

Starch is an abundant and cheap biopolymer with a good film forming ability and therefore it

appear to be an appropriate source for preparation of the cheap biodegradable packaging (Ciela,

2009, Ciela et al., 2010). In purpose to improve the properties of starch films various

modification methods are applied for the starch substrate as well as blending starch with the other

natural polymer or with the artificial biodegradable polymer. It was proved that it is possible to

improve properties of starch based films using of radiation modification (Ciela et al., 2010).

PVA can be used for packaging purposes and is known to be the appropriate polymer for

blending with starch.

Our present studies are connected to the possible application of radiation technology for

modification of the cellulose structure and the properties of the cellulose containing

biodegradable plastics. This can be also related to the possible application of such materials for

packing the products subjected to radiation decontamination. The special focus was on

nanocellulose (NCC). Moreover, comparison of the nanocellulose with the micro-sized cellulose

has appeared interesting. Accordingly, the preliminary studies were conducted concerning

gamma and electron irradiation effect on cellulose/nanocellulose. Furthermore, PVA, starch and


38

PVA-starch films containing cellulose and nanocellulose were prepared and the effect of gamma

irradiation on the properties of the obtained materials was examined.

Studies of the basic processes taking place under influence of gamma and electron radiation in

the celluloses were carried out using EPR and gas chromatography. High efficiency of free

radicals formation was noticed in the case of nanocellulose as compared to microfibrinal

cellulose, while very low evidence of free radicals formation was observed in the case of

microcrystalline cellulose. Higher reactivity of NCC as compared to the other celluloses was

confirmed by the higher efficiency of hydrogen formation and oxygen consumption resulting

from irradiation.

Introduction of micro-sized celluloses into the films induced decrease in tensile strength and in

elongation on break, while appropriate introduction of nanocellulose lead to the improvement of

the mechanical properties of the films. This result might be related to the differences in

microstructure of the films, in particular to the high homogeneity of the films containing NCC

and non-homogeneity of the films containing micro-sized cellulose (shown by SEM).

The effect of irradiation on the mechanical properties of the films depends on the sample

composition and the conditions applied during synthesis and irradiation. Preliminary data have

shown slight improvement as well as deterioration of these properties. The properties of some

compositions containing NCC were not changed after radiation treatment. These results might be

related to the modified films microstructure (SEM).

Hydrophilicity of the majority of the films (shown by contact angle data) has increased after

irradiation. However, in some cases these properties became unchanged or even decreases, ie. in

the case of starch-NCC or selected starch-PVA NCC compositions.

Specific interaction of the PVA films with moisture were detected on the way of the moisture

uptake experiments. The changes in these interaction were detected after irradiation accompanied

by the lowered level of moisture under equilibrium conditions. Simultaneously, water uptake by

the PVA films containing nanocellulose was higher as compared to the films containing micro-

sized celluloses.

Decrease in the gel fraction content was found after irradiation in majority of the samples

showing the occurring degradation processes.

These preliminary results show modification of microstructure the films and the increase in the

compatibility of their components taking place under gamma radiation. The effect of irradiation

depend on the sample composition and on the applied condition. Degradation was found to be the

prevailing process taking place in the majority of the films. However, it can be supposed that

crosslinking occur simultaneously with degradation. Selected compositions containing nano-sized

cellulose revealled better mechanical properties as compared to the films containing both micro-

sized cellulose or prepared without the cellulose additive, and appeared not sensitive to

irradiation or show improvement of some properties after irradiation.

REFERENCES

Ciela K.A., Nowicki A., Buczkowski M.J. (2010). Preliminary studies of the influence of starch

irradiation on physico-chemical properties of films prepared using starch and starch surfactant

system. Nukleonika, 55(2), 233242.

Ciela K. (2009). Transformation of supramolecular structure initialized in natural polymers by

gamma irradiation. Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology


39

Studies on the tosylation of cellulose in mixtures of ionic liquids and a co-solvent

Martin Gericke,c Jens Schaller,b Tim Liebert,c Pedro Fardim,a Frank Meister,b Thomas Heinzea,b,c

a Laboratory of Fibre and Cellulose Technology, bo Akademi University, Porthansgatan 3, FI-20500

Turku, Finland b Thuringian Institute for Textile and Plastics Research, Breitscheidstrae 97, D-07407 Rudolstadt,

Germany c Institute of Organic Chemistry and Macromolecular Chemistry, Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, Centre of Excellence for Polysaccharide Research, Humboldtstrae 10, D-07743 Jena, Germany

+49 3641 948270 fax: +49 3641 948272 e-mail: [email protected] (T.Heinze)

Keywords: cellulose, ionic liquids, tosylation

ABSTRACT

Ionic liquids (ILs) are a valuable tool for the shaping of cellulose (1,2). We are working on

conceptions where this shaping can be combined with chemical modification leading to

derivatives suitable for surface-modification. One of the most promising derivatives in this regard

is the cellulose-p-toluenesulphonic acid ester (cellulose tosylate). Thus, the tosylation of cellulose

in ILs was studied (3) (Fig. 1,).

Figure 1: Scheme for the reaction of cellulose with tosyl chloride (Tos-Cl) and the subsequent conversion of

tosyl cellulose with a nucleophile (Nuc).

Due to the beneficial effect of different co-solvents, the reaction could be performed at 25C

without the need of heating (in order to reduce viscosity) or cooling (in order to prevent side

reactions). The effects of reaction parameters, such as time, molar ratio, and type of base, on the

degree of substitution (DS) with tosyl- and chloro-deoxy groups as well as on the molecular

weight were evaluated. Products with a DStosyl 1.14 and DSCl 0.16 (Fig. 2) were obtained and

characterised by means of NMR- and FT-IR spectroscopy in order to evaluate their purity and

distribution of functional groups within the modified anhydroglucose unit (AGU). Tosylation of

cellulose in mixtures of IL and a co-solvent was found to result in predominant substitution at the

primary hydroxyl group. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) revealed only a moderate


40

degradation of the polymer backbone at a reaction time of 4-8 h. Finally, the nucleophilic

displacement (SN) of tosyl- and chloro-deoxy groups by azide as well as recycling of the ILs was

studied.

Figure 2: Overall degree of substitution (DS) of tosyl celluloses obtained in 1-butyl-3- methylimidazolium

chloride (BMIMCl)/1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone (DMI) in the presence of 1-butylimidazole (left side) or in

BMIMCl/pyridine without an additional base (right side) at different reaction conditions. Individual

contributions of DStosyl (darkareas) and DSCl (bright areas) are highlighted.

REFERENCES

1) Cellulose Solvents: For Analysis, Shaping and Chemical Modification; Eds.: Liebert, T.

Heinze, T. Edgar K.; American Chemical Society, Washington DC, USA, ACS Symposium

Series 1033, on-line February 23, 2010, (ISBN13: 9780841200067).

2) Liebert, T., Heinze, T. (2008). Interaction of ionic liquids with polysaccharides. 5.

solvents and reaction media for the modification of cellulose. Bioresources, 3, 576-

601.

3) Gericke, M,. Schaller, J., Liebert, T., Fardim, P., Meister, F., Heinze, Th. (2012).

Comprehensive Study on the Tosylation of Cellulose in Ionic Liquids and Ionic

Liquid/Co-Solvent Mixtures. Carbohydr. Polym., 89, 526 536.


41

Structural Ordering and Self-assembly in Mesogenic Cellulose Nanocrystal Phases

Daniel J. Hewson, Stephen J. Eichhorn, Peter Vukusic

Physics & Astronomy, College of Engineering, Maths & Physical Sciences, Stocker Road, University of Exeter, Exeter, Devon, UK. E: [email protected]

Keywords: cellulose nanocrystals, self-assembly, order

ABSTRACT

Cellulose nanostructures have been found to possess remarkable optical properties derived from

their ability to form mesogenic phases in liquid solutions (Gray et al. 1992). These phases are

currently being used to produce iridescent thin films (Fernandes et al. 2013). The formation of

cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) into mesogenic phases occurs via a self-assembly process that for

cellulose produces two different phases. Cellulose has been observed to form two of the three

mesogenic phases formed by liquid vrystal polymers, the nematic phase and the cholesteric phase

(MacLachlan et al. 2013). A nematic phase has long range directional order in the plane parallel

to the longitudinal axis of the nanowhisker and short range positional order. The cholesteric

phase consists of a twist in the plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis brought about by a

small rotation in each CNC in the stack. As part of the effort to research the exciting potential

that cellulose nanocrystal structures have to produce colour, this work aims to explore the self-

assembly processes and the extent to which they can produce structural colour. The approach has

been to follow the drying process in liquid aqueous drops of CNCs. The formation of the phases

across a single drop has been tracked using polarised light microscopy (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: Polarised optical microscope image of a Cellulose nanocrystal thin film taken using a full 530nm

retardation plate


42

REFERENCES

Gray, D. G., Revol, J.-F., Bradford, H., Giasson, J. and Marchessault, R. H. (1992). Helicoidal

self-ordering of cellulose microfibrils in aqueous suspension. Int. J. Biol. Macromol. 14, 170-172.

MacLachlan, M. J., Cheung, C. Y., Giese M., Kelly, J. A. and Hamad, W. Y. (2013). Iridescent

Chiral nematic cellulose nanocrystal/polymer composites assembled in organic solvents. ACS

Macro Lett. 2, 1016-1020.

Fernandes, S. N., Geng, Y., Vignolini, S., Glover, B. J., Trindade, A. C., Canejo, J. P., Almeida,

P. L., Brogueira, P. and Godinho, M. H. (2013). Structural colour and Iridescence in Transparent

Sheared Cellulosic Films. Macromol. Chem. Phys. 214, 25-32.


43

Preparation and characterisation of nano-cellulose

Kay Hettrich, Manfred Pinnow, Bert Volkert

Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research, Geiselbergstr. 69, 14476 Potsdam-Golm, Germany, [email protected]

Keywords: nano-cellulose, raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, ultra-centrifugation

ABSTRACT

Novel nano-scaled cellulose particles have been prepared by high-pressure homogenising of

different pre-treated cellulose samples with Microfluidiser processor (MF) in aqueous media.

One possibility of pre-treatment is a decrystallisation step realised by dissolving and regenerating

cellulose from a melt NMMNO*H2O solvent system. Nano-cellulose was obtained by a

subsequent high-pressure mechanical treatment of the precipitate in aqueous dispersion.

Decrystallisation was also realised by grinding cellulose in a planetary mill. Ground cellulose

was subsequently dispersed with high-speed stirrer Ultra-Turrax (UT) and high-pressure

homogeniser. The amorphous intermediates were characterised by means of WAXS, Raman

spectroscopy and DP determination.

By another way the preparation of nano-scaled cellulose was conducted by hydrolysis and

following mechanical treatment of hydrolysed cellulose with Ultra-Turrax and

Microfluidizer. A further alternative was given by the mechanical treatment of aqueous

dispersions of low substituted cellulose derivatives. For example methyl cellulose,

carboxymethyl cellulose and oxidised cellulose gave nano-scaled materials with interesting

properties.

In order to obtain information about cellulose particle sizes, UT and MF treated dispersions were

characterised by means of static and dynamic light scattering (DLS), ultra-centrifugation and

scanning electron microscopy (SEM), rheological measurements revealed the viscoelastic

properties and gel-like structure of the materials as well as time- and shear-dependent effects like

thixotropy and pseudoplasticity (structural viscosity).

In conjunction with potential applications film forming properties and temperature dependent

behaviour (e.g. viscosity) of the materials were investigated.

Selected samples of nano-cellulosic dispersions were dried via lyophilisation, via spray drying,

and solvent exchange. The dried products were characterised in terms of porosity (mercury

porosimetry) and particle morphology (SEM). Re-dispersed samples were compared with starting

dispersions by means of SEM, DLS and rheometry.


44

Robust biodegradble optically tunable NCC sheets

Nir Peer1, Y.Nevo2, S. Yochelis1, O.Shosayov2, Y. Paltiel1

1Applied Physics Department and the Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, The Hebrew University of

Jerusalem

2The Faculty of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Quality Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

ABSTRACT

Nano crystalline cellulose (NCC) is one of the most exciting new bio materials made from

cellulose. Cellulose is the main component of cell walls of trees and plants and can be produced

from recycled sources such as waste streams of paper mills or sewage treatment plants. NCC is

nearly as strong as Kevlar and can be added to a variety of materials to increase their strength and

stiffness. Because of the self-assembly features of NCC, it can form a very dense layer which

substantially decreases the transfer of air through the sheet. It is environmental friendly is

potential for many applications such as green houses and food packaging.

Using nanoparticles (NPs), which possess size-dependent quantum properties, enables a control

over the sheets optical properties (Yoffe, 2001). For example, it is well known that insects use

UV light to navigate. Therefore, the NPs that absorb incoming solar UV light enhance the plants

defense system towards plant-eating insects (Chiel et al, 2006). In figure 1 we show how the

combination of NCC with ZnO or CdSe/CdS NPs displays a good absorption of UV light, while

being almost transparent in the visible range. In addition, NPs may improve the photosynthesis

efficiency by converting the absorbed UV light to the visible spectrum by emission, as seen in the

inset of figure 1. Moreover, blocking thermal IR light which is emitted from the ground may also

increase the energy efficiency by the heat conservation (Katsoulas et al, 2004, Mears et al, 1974).

This can also be achieved by using suitable NPs, as seen in figure 2.

In the presented work we have combined the NCC properties with the NPs to fabricate strong

optically controlled biodegradable sheets that have the potential for many applications such as

green houses and food packaging.

In the future we plan to use Si/SiO2 emitting NPs which are environmentally friendly in order to

convert the UV light to visible light as we observed in the CdSe/ZnS NPs. Furthermore, we

intend to