Cellulose/Poly(meta-phenylene isophthalamide) Light-Management Films with High Antiultraviolet and Tunable Haze Performances

Light-management films are usually fabricated from the petrochemical-based polymers, and developing renewable and biodegradable cellulose-based light-management films with high transparence, tunable haze, and UV-blocking capacity by a facile and large-scale production method is still challenging. Herein, cellulose/poly­(meta-phenylene isophthalamide) (PMIA) light-management films were manufactured by simple blending, which was fit for the large-scale production of cellulose/PMIA films. It was found that the cellulose/PMIA composite films showed tunable haze (14–55%), high transparence (>78%), UV-blocking capacity, and irradiation stability. In addition, the elongation at break and tensile strength of the composite film can be improved to 23.78% and 55.90 MPa compared to those of the native cellulose film (21.94% and 45.83 MPa), ascribed to copious hydrogen bonds between PMIA and cellulose molecules. Hence, the cellulose/PMIA light-management films with enhanced optical and mechanical properties were fabricated successfully, and they showed great potential in flexible displays and energy-efficient buildings

Engineering Ionic Dough with a Deep Eutectic Solvent: From a Traditional Dough Figurine to Flexible Electronics

Conductive ionogels had demonstrated significant prospects in the field of flexible electronics. Nonetheless, it remains a big challenge to develop ionogels, by using degradable and recyclable components, with multiple functional properties. Herein, inspired by a traditional dough figurine, a novel type of ionic dough assembled from flour, water, and choline chloride/glycerol deep eutectic solvent was engineered to replace non-recyclable and non-degradable components of present ionogels. The obtained ionic dough exhibited superior conductive performance (conductivity of 3.7 mS·cm–1), long-lasting moisture retention (80% weight retention after 24 days), reliable self-healing ability (the healing efficiency was up to 95%), and excellent antibacterial and biodegradable (entirely degraded within 30 days) properties. Wearable strain sensors based on the ionic dough can accurately detect both large and subtle human activities with high strain sensitivity (gauge factor = 6.2) and durable stability under a wide working temperature range (−20 to 80 °C). Notably, the ionic dough can be further applied in green batteries and luminescent display screens of electroluminescent devices. Therefore, it was envisioned that the effective and innovative design strategy for fabricating conductive ionogels, using natural flour components, with multiple functionalities would provide wide applications of flexible wearable devices

Engineering Ionic Dough with a Deep Eutectic Solvent: From a Traditional Dough Figurine to Flexible Electronics

Conductive ionogels had demonstrated significant prospects in the field of flexible electronics. Nonetheless, it remains a big challenge to develop ionogels, by using degradable and recyclable components, with multiple functional properties. Herein, inspired by a traditional dough figurine, a novel type of ionic dough assembled from flour, water, and choline chloride/glycerol deep eutectic solvent was engineered to replace non-recyclable and non-degradable components of present ionogels. The obtained ionic dough exhibited superior conductive performance (conductivity of 3.7 mS·cm–1), long-lasting moisture retention (80% weight retention after 24 days), reliable self-healing ability (the healing efficiency was up to 95%), and excellent antibacterial and biodegradable (entirely degraded within 30 days) properties. Wearable strain sensors based on the ionic dough can accurately detect both large and subtle human activities with high strain sensitivity (gauge factor = 6.2) and durable stability under a wide working temperature range (−20 to 80 °C). Notably, the ionic dough can be further applied in green batteries and luminescent display screens of electroluminescent devices. Therefore, it was envisioned that the effective and innovative design strategy for fabricating conductive ionogels, using natural flour components, with multiple functionalities would provide wide applications of flexible wearable devices

Engineering Ionic Dough with a Deep Eutectic Solvent: From a Traditional Dough Figurine to Flexible Electronics

Conductive ionogels had demonstrated significant prospects in the field of flexible electronics. Nonetheless, it remains a big challenge to develop ionogels, by using degradable and recyclable components, with multiple functional properties. Herein, inspired by a traditional dough figurine, a novel type of ionic dough assembled from flour, water, and choline chloride/glycerol deep eutectic solvent was engineered to replace non-recyclable and non-degradable components of present ionogels. The obtained ionic dough exhibited superior conductive performance (conductivity of 3.7 mS·cm–1), long-lasting moisture retention (80% weight retention after 24 days), reliable self-healing ability (the healing efficiency was up to 95%), and excellent antibacterial and biodegradable (entirely degraded within 30 days) properties. Wearable strain sensors based on the ionic dough can accurately detect both large and subtle human activities with high strain sensitivity (gauge factor = 6.2) and durable stability under a wide working temperature range (−20 to 80 °C). Notably, the ionic dough can be further applied in green batteries and luminescent display screens of electroluminescent devices. Therefore, it was envisioned that the effective and innovative design strategy for fabricating conductive ionogels, using natural flour components, with multiple functionalities would provide wide applications of flexible wearable devices

Biobased Microspheres with Nanoshell/Micron-Core Structure via Recycled Polysterene toward Electrophoretic Imaging

As an important source of white pollution, disposable polystyrene fast food containers (DPSFFC) have attracted great attention, and the technologies for the effective reuse of DPSFFC are of great practical significance. Herein, an attempt was made to reuse DPSFFC to produce high-value microspheres for electronic devices. In the processing, DPSFFC were recycled as the matrix and biobased polyamide11 (PA11, derived from castor oil) was used as the dispersion phase to achieve a preferential location of TiO2 nanoparticles in the PA11 domains; taking advantage of the high solubility of recycled polysterene (RPS) in limonene, a biosolvent derived from citrus, PA11 microspheres encapsulated with TiO2 nanoshells (∼70 nm) were extracted from the recycled PS matrix successfully. The unique structure can be ascribed to a customized copolymer, composed of polystyrene and maleic anhydride segments (SMA-g-PS) via the RAFT (Reversible Addition–Fragmentation Chain Transfer Polymerization) strategy, introduced into the system. This copolymer acts as a compatibilizer and anchoring agent, significantly decreasing the number-average diameter of the microspheres. Impressively, the prepared microspheres demonstrate high potential as charged particles in electrophoretic imaging. This special property is highly related to the nanoshell/micron-core structure. Taking advantage of the disposable PS and bioresources, combined with scalable processing, an upcycling method was developed to produce high-value microspheres in a sustainable way

Extraction of Glyoxylic Acid Stabilized Lignin from Lignocellulosic Biomass for a Natural Sunscreen Additive

Natural lignin has been considered a promising additive for ultraviolet (UV) protection cosmetics applications. Nevertheless, its potential application in cosmetics production is impeded by its inherent dark coloration due to structural damage incurred during the industrial lignin extraction process. In this study, glyoxylic acid (GA) was used to prevent lignin condensation during lignin extraction using an acid recycled hydrotrope (p-toluenesulfonic acid, p-TsOH). Further processing of the GA stabilized lignin yielded lignin nanospheres (LNPs) for a natural sunscreen additive. Incorporating 3% and 4% LNPs into a baseline SPF10 commercial sunscreen resulted in lignin-based sunscreen with SPF values of 37.2 ± 2.55 and 58.74 ± 2.14, respectively. These exceeded the SPF levels observed in commercial sunscreens with SPF30 and SPF50. Furthermore, the pretreated cellulose residue was utilized in the production of pulp fibers for papermaking. It was observed that the ring crush strength index of the paper, achieved by incorporating 15 wt % fibers into softwood pulp, reached a notable value of 2.98 ± 0.10 N·m/g. The tear index and tensile index of the produced paper, augmented with a 5 wt % addition of fibers, were as high as 4.77 ± 0.41 mN·m2/g and 9.49 ± 0.27 N·m/g, respectively. Therefore, a new strategy for stabilized lignin extraction and lignocellulose biomass valorization was proposed in this study

Fabrication of a Carbonized Cellulose Nanofibrils/Ti₃C₂T_<i>x</i> MXene/g‑C₃N₄ Heterojunction for Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalysis

Photocatalytic degrading pollutants driven by visible-light irradiation has attracted tremendous attention. One strategy of preparing carbonized cellulose nanofibrils/Ti3C2Tx MXene/g-C3N4 (CMCN) as a photocatalyst was developed. The as-prepared CMCN was comprehensively characterized in terms of the chemical composition, chemical and crystal structure, morphology, and photoelectrochemical properties. The CMCN was explored as a photocatalyst and exhibited good photocatalytic performance in degrading MB (96.5%), RhB (95.4%), and TC (86.5%) under visible-light conditions. In addition, the CMCN as a photocatalyst exhibited good reusability and stability. It is found that the incorporation of cellulose nanofibrils provided a high carbon content, a high porosity, and a large specific surface area, enhanced the electron transfer, improved the photocatalytic performance, and ensured a semiconductor with a high stability. It is believed that this study would provide an effective approach to preparing a photocatalyst and broaden the potential application of cellulose nanofibrils in photocatalysis

Aramid Nanofiber and Boron Nitride Nanosheet Composite Films for Mechanical and Dielectric Insulation Application

In this work, we obviously enhanced the mechanical and dielectric insulation properties of the aramid nanofiber (ANF) film only by mixing a small amount of two-dimensional boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) (0.09 wt %), which were in situ introduced as the assistor of aramid splitting. The composite nanofilm exhibited a tensile stress of 282 MPa and a dielectric breakdown strength of 100.7 kV·mm–1, which increased by 55.8 and 149.3%, respectively. These improvements may be attributed to the introduction of BNNSs, which made the films denser and more horizontally ordered, as well as the enhanced interfacial interactions between individual ANFs. Meanwhile, the ANF/BNNS film also shows high thermal stability, self-extinguishing properties, and excellent chemical stability simultaneously. This work provides a strategy to enhance the mechanical and dielectric insulation properties of ANF-based nanocomposites

Additional file 1 of A cellulose nanofibril-reinforced hydrogel with robust mechanical, self-healing, pH-responsive and antibacterial characteristics for wound dressing applications

Additional file 1: Fig. S1. FTIR spectra of PEG, RSV, CNF and RSV-PEG-CNF conjugate. Fig. S2. Swelling ratio of different hydrogel groups. Fig. S3. Water vapor permeability of control, commercial Tegaderm film and RPC/PB hydrogel groups with different RPC content. Fig. S4. SEM images of RPC conjugate, PB, RPC/PB-0.2, RPC/PB-0.5 and RPC/PB-0.8 hydrogels. Fig. S5. Storage modulus (G') and loss modulus (G'') of PB, RPC/PB-0.2, RPC/PB-0.5 and RPC/PB-0.8 hydrogels versus frequency. Fig. S6. RSV release profiles from RPC conjugate under pH 5.4, 6.2 and 7.4. Fig. S7. FTIR spectra of PB, C/PB-0.5 and RPC/PB-0.5 hydrogels

Translucent and Anti-ultraviolet Aramid Nanofiber Films with Efficient Light Management Fabricated by Sol–Gel Transformation

Derived from poly­(para-phenylene terephthalamide) PPTA fibers, aramid nanofibers (ANFs) not only inherit the excellent properties of PPTA fibers but also demonstrate the nanoeffects of one-dimensional (1D) nanomaterials, showing great potentials in many emerging fields as building blocks. However, ANF-based materials are usually obtained by vacuum-assisted filtration after the regeneration of ANFs, leading to long cycle times and waste of energy. Moreover, the effects of antisolvents on the structure and property of the obtained ANF-based materials were rarely reported. In this work, an in situ-regenerated continuous production line of sol–gel transformation technology was provided to produce ANF films in a large scale. Moreover, the impacts of coagulation baths (water and ethanol) on the structure and properties of ANF films were investigated systematically. It was found that the coagulation baths had obvious effects on the microstructure and properties of ANF films. As a result, ANF films with high transparency, high anti-ultraviolet capacity, and tunable haze can be fabricated successfully by simply changing the component of the coagulation bath. Particularly, the averaged values of ANF films in the region of 315–400 nm (TUVA) and 290–315 nm (TUVB) are nearly 0%, and the haze of ANF Film 100 can reach as high as 90% at 800 nm when ethanol was used as the first coagulation bath. Meanwhile, ANF films (Film 0) regenerated from water displayed the highest transmittance (78.77% at 800 nm) and tensile strength (102.88 MPa), attributed to their homogeneous structures. Additionally, the transmittance and tensile strength were decreased obviously with the increasing ethanol content in the first coagulation bath. Overall, ANF films showed high tensile strength, good thermal stability, and fire-retardant performance. Herein, the ANF films with many merits demonstrate great promising potential to be used in the light management field