A Morphological Characterization of High Yield Chitin from Periwinkle Shells

Research on obtaining chitin from periwinkle shell is scarce due to the very low yield of chitin from this kind of shell. Thisstudy reports a method of processing periwinkle shells to obtain high yield, bio-medically suitable chitin. The experimentwas designed using IM and 2M concentrations of HCl for demineralization and a 1M NaOH concentration for deproteinization. FTIR, SEM, XRD and DTA analytical tools were used to characterize the extracted chitin. The FTIR spectral, XRD patterns and SEM analysis, revealed the complete removal of calcium carbonate by the acid concentrations used. The particle-like form of periwinkle shell was transformed to sheet-like fiber and globular-like fiber of α-chitin by increasing the concentration of HCl from1M to 2M respectively. The crystal size increased from 11.2Å (1M HCl) to 13.4Å (2M HCl). The yield of chitin from periwinkle shell also increased from 52% to 71% using 1M and 2M HCl respectively. Thus, acid concentrations can be used to alter the structure of chitin with different mechanical properties

Strength, Water Absorption, Thermal and Antimicrobial Properties of a Biopolymer Composite Wound Dressing

Conventional wound material allows bacterial invasions, trauma and discomfort associated with the changing of the dressing material, and the accumulation of body fluid for wounds with high exudate. However, there is a shift from conventional wound dressing materials to polymeric nanofibers due to their high surface area to volume ratio, high porosity, good pore size distribution, which allows for cell adhesion and proliferation. There is an urgent need to synthesis a biodegradable composite that is resistant to bacterial infection. In this study, an electrospun polylactide (PLA) composite suitable for wound dressing, with enhanced antimicrobial and mechanical properties, was produced. The neat PLA, PLA/CH (10 wt.%), PLA/CH (5 wt.%), PLA/CHS (10 wt.%), PLA/CHS (5 wt.%), PLA/CH (2.5 wt.%) /CHS (2.5 wt.%) and PLA/CH (5 wt.%)/CHS (5 wt.%), were electrospun using 0.14 g/ml solution. Results show that crystallinity (67.6%) of neat PLA declined by 3.8% on the addition of 2.5 wt.% chitin/chitosan with improved hydrophilicity of the composite. The tensile strength of neat PLA (0.3 MPa) increased (0.6 MPa) with 2.5 wt.% chitin/chitosan addition. The slight increase in the glass transition temperature from 75°C for neat PLA to 78°C of the composite fibre, showed improved ductility. The fibres showed little beads, hence suitable for wound dressing. The electrospun mats have good water absorption capacity and strong resistance against Staphylococcus aureus. Good performance was attained at 5 wt.% of chitin, chitosan and hybrid reinforcements. Therefore, a PLA/chitin/chitosan composite is recommended as a wound dressing material

Structural and Morphological Evaluations of Natural Hydroxyapatite from Calcined Animal Bones for Biomedical Applications

Several biomedical materials have been employed as drug delivery systems, but natural Hydroxyapatite (HAP) has been proven to be exceptionally better than other materials owing to its excellent bioactivity and biocompatibility properties. In this study, nat­ural HAP was obtained from bovine and caprine bones and comparatively analysed for biomedical applications. The bones were hydrothermally treated, calcined in the temperature range of 700–1100°C, held for 2 hours in an electric furnace to remove the organic contents; milled, sifted with 150 μm mesh sieve and then characterized. It was revealed by Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDS) that the bovine and caprine bone samples calcined at 1000°C had calcium/phosphorus ratio (Ca/P) of 1.66 closest to the standard of 1.67. The bovine HAP showed the best crystallinity (86.23%) at 1000°C while caprine HAP had its highest (87.25%) at 1100°C. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) results revealed that the calcination temperature must be greater than 700°C to isolate high quality HAP. The Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed that the samples calcined at 800°C had the largest average particle size (85.34 μm) while porosity increases with calcination temperature in both samples. The HAP obtained at a calcination temperature of 1000°C proved to have the best quality for biomedical applications

Electrospun porous bio-fibre mat based on polylactide/natural fibre particles

A fully bio-based highly porous bio-fibre mat from polylactide (PLA) and bagasse particles (BCp) composite have been investigated for scaffold applications. PLA and BCp were mixed in varying proportions in dichloromethane (DCM) and electrospun (with specific machine parameters) into fibres at varying spin angles (30°, 45° and 90°). A constant weight fraction of BCp (5 wt. %) was used to form solutions with varying concentrations 0.09–0.14 g/ml which were then electrospun into fibres. Mechanical, moisture resistance and morphological characteristics of the fibres were examined. Results reveal that a combination of specific fibre reinforcement, spinneret angle and solution concentration produced a highly porous fibre mat. The presence of the BCp in the electrospun PLA fibre enhanced the fibres’ tensile strength. The study also reveals that fibre mechanical and physical properties are dependent on the spinneret angle and solution concentration

Cutting Cement Industry CO₂ Emissions through Metakaolin Use in Construction

Cement production is one of the most important industries on the planet, and humans have relied on is use dating back to the dawn of civilization. Cement manufacturing has increased at an exponential rate, reaching 3 billion metric tons in 2015, representing a 6.3% annual growth rate and accounting for around 5–8% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Geopolymer materials, which are inorganic polymers made from a wide range of aluminosilicate powders, such as metakaolin, fly ash, and blast furnace or steel slags, have also been elicited for use due to concerns about the high energy consumption and CO2 emissions connected with cement and concrete manufacturing. This study focused on the mechanical and durability properties of metakaolin in concrete production. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) analyses were used to confirm the characteristics of kaolin and metakaolin. The results showed that 15 wt.% metakaolin can be used to partially replace cement, and that metakaolin, when synthesized with alkaline activators, can also be utilized as a geopolymer to totally replace cement in concrete production. For predicting the compressive strength of different concrete mixtures, few practical models have been presented. This research has shed light on the possibility of utilizing ecologically friendly materials in the building, construction, and transportation sectors to decrease carbon dioxide emissions