Pre-treatment and extraction techniques for recovery of added value compounds from wastes throughout the agri-food chain

The enormous quantity of food wastes discarded annually force to look for alternatives for this interesting feedstock. Thus, food bio-waste valorisation is one of the imperatives of the nowadays society. This review is the most comprehensive overview of currently existing technologies and processes in this field. It tackles classical and innovative physical, physico-chemical and chemical methods of food waste pre-treatment and extraction for recovery of added value compounds and detection by modern technologies and are an outcome of the COST Action EUBIS, TD1203 Food Waste Valorisation for Sustainable Chemicals, Materials and Fuels

Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Lignins from Different Sources and Isolation Methods for an Application as a Biobased Chemical Resource and Polymeric Material

Lignins in general have been extensively studied, though the relation between source, isolation method and application is rarely described. In the present work, lignin from different sources (wheat straw and beech wood) and isolation methods (steam explosion, Organosolv) has been characterized regarding their application as a chemical resource and polymeric material. A range of analytical methods were applied including elemental analysis, FT-IR, 31P NMR, SEC, Py-GC-MS and HPLC to gain information about establish the purity, structure, molecular weight, thermal behavior and to determine carbohydrate residues according to the NREL protocol. TGA and DSC were used to study the thermal behavior of the isolated lignins and showed relatively low glass transition temperatures around 120 °C and decomposition temperatures between 340 and 380 °C. NREL analysis presented a carbohydrate-free lignin fraction derived from beech wood via Organosolv process which has not been achieved to date. The finding of this work supports Organolsolv as an efficient method to isolate pure lignin fractions from beech wood with practical value in industry, in particular for application in polyurethanes and phenolic resins

Lignin-Derived Biomaterials for Drug Release and Tissue Engineering

Renewable resources gain increasing interest as source for environmentally benign biomaterials, such as drug encapsulation/release compounds, and scaffolds for tissue engineering in regenerative medicine. Being the second largest naturally abundant polymer, the interest in lignin valorization for biomedical utilization is rapidly growing. Depending on resource and isolation procedure, lignin shows specific antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. Today, efforts in research and industry are directed toward lignin utilization as renewable macromolecular building block for the preparation of polymeric drug encapsulation and scaffold materials. Within the last five years, remarkable progress has been made in isolation, functionalization and modification of lignin and lignin-derived compounds. However, literature so far mainly focuses lignin-derived fuels, lubricants and resins. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current state of the art and to highlight the most important results in the field of lignin-based materials for potential use in biomedicine (reported in 2014–2018). Special focus is drawn on lignin-derived nanomaterials for drug encapsulation and release as well as lignin hybrid materials used as scaffolds for guided bone regeneration in stem cell-based therapies

Lignocellulosic Biomass as Source for Lignin-Based Environmentally Benign Antioxidants

Antioxidant activity is an essential aspect of oxygen-sensitive merchandise and goods, such as food and corresponding packaging, cosmetics, and biomedicine. Technical lignin has not yet been applied as a natural antioxidant, mainly due to the complex heterogeneous structure and polydispersity of lignin. This report presents antioxidant capacity studies completed using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay. The influence of purification on lignin structure and activity was investigated. The purification procedure showed that double-fold selective extraction is the most efficient (confirmed by ultraviolet-visible (UV/Vis), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), heteronuclear single quantum coherence (HSQC) and 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography, and X-ray diffraction), resulting in fractions of very narrow polydispersity (3.2⁻1.6), up to four distinct absorption bands in UV/Vis spectroscopy. Due to differential scanning calorimetry measurements, the glass transition temperature increased from 123 to 185 °C for the purest fraction. Antioxidant capacity is discussed regarding the biomass source, pulping process, and degree of purification. Lignin obtained from industrial black liquor are compared with beech wood samples: antioxidant activity (DPPH inhibition) of kraft lignin fractions were 62⁻68%, whereas beech and spruce/pine-mixed lignin showed values of 42% and 64%, respectively. Total phenol content (TPC) of the isolated kraft lignin fractions varied between 26 and 35%, whereas beech and spruce/pine lignin were 33% and 34%, respectively. Storage decreased the TPC values but increased the DPPH inhibition

Gestaltung von Zu- und Übergängen zu Angeboten der Hochschulweiterbildung

Diese Handreichung basiert auf einem Workshop zur Gestaltung von Zu- und Übergängen zu Angeboten der Hochschulweiterbildung, der am 9. September 2014 an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin stattgefunden hat. Sie gibt einen Eindruck des aktuellen Stands von Ansätzen zur Gestaltung von Zu- und Übergängen zu Angeboten des Lebenslangen Lernens an deutschen Hochschulen und liefert Hinweise für die Konzeption und Organisation von Angeboten. Zudem kann sie als Grundlage dazu dienen, den eigenen Arbeitsstand zu reflektieren und einzuordnen. Diese Publikation ist im Rahmen der wissenschaftlichen Begleitung des Bund-Länder-Wettbewerbs „Aufstieg durch Bildung: offene Hochschulen“ entstanden. (Hrsg.