Cellulose Utilization Research Articles

Sodium Carboxymethylcellulose Serves as Sustained-Release Agents for Providing Analgesia at the Donor Site After Costal Cartilage Harvesting in Ear Reconstruction.

The postoperative pain experienced at the donor site following ear reconstruction using autologous costal cartilage significantly impacts patients' quality of life. Sodium carboxymethylcellulose demonstrates a favorable sustained release property, and its potential to prolong the analgesic effect of ropivacaine remains unexplored. The present study aimed to investigate the analgesic efficacy of ropivacaine gel formulated with sodium carboxymethylcellulose as a sustained-release agent on the donor site of costalcartilage. A retrospective analysis was conducted on a total of 75 patients who underwent costal cartilage ear reconstruction. The patients were divided into three groups based on the different analgesic methods applied to the cartilage donor site: ropivacaine solution group, ropivacaine gel group, and ropivacaine solution combined with gel group. The visual analog scale (VAS) and patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) were used to evaluate the severity of chest pain. The study included a total of 60 patients undergoing ear reconstruction, with 20 patients in each group. The VAS chest pain score and the frequency of PCA application were lower in both the ropivacaine gel group and the ropivacaine solution combined with gel group compared to the ropivacaine solution group. There was no significant difference observed between the ropivacaine gel group and the ropivacaine solution combined with gel group. The utilization of sodium carboxymethyl cellulose as a sustained-release agent in the formulation of ropivacaine gel has been found to effectively prolong the duration of pain relief and alleviate postoperative discomfort at the donor site following ear reconstruction with costal cartilage harvesting. This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Functionalization of cellulose by facile Dissolution-Regeneration in A novel CS2/DBU/DMSO solvent system for detection of metal ions and antibacterial

The high value-added utilization of cellulose with various functions is a hot topic in the field of bio-based materials. The existing high value-added utilization methods mainly rely on the dissolution and functionalization of cellulose in two steps in a homogeneous system. Herein, a new CS2/DBU/DMSO solvent system was successfully designed by combining viscose and CO2 switchable solvent, and then obtained regenerated product (DCC) with metal ion detection and antibacterial functions through a simple process from dissolution to regeneration. Cellulose dissolves mildly and efficiently in this system. In addition, the metal ion test paper prepared from DCC can quickly respond to Co2+, Cu2+, and Fe3+ ions and produce significant visual color changes in a short period of time. Finally, the experiment showed that the DCC film has good antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli. This study lays the foundation for the dissolution, derivation, and processing of cellulose, and provides new ideas for the production of functional materials using cellulose in the future.

Engineering cellulose aerogel composites for mercury ion sequestration and aquatic real time monitoring based on the immobilization of metal-organic frameworks

Industrial wastewater effluents containing elevated levels of mercury are a significant menace to both the ecosystem and human health. Despite the advent of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as promising adsorbents, their application in treatment of industrial wastewater has been impeded by the challenges associated with handling their powdered form. In this work, we introduce a straightforward method for fabricating MOF composite cellulose aerogels (5MM-101@CA). The resulting adsorbent showed a high adsorption capacity of 409.84 mg/g for Hg (II), with over 75 % removal efficiency maintained after five consecutive adsorption-desorption cycles. Furthermore, the material exhibited high sensitivity for the real-time detection of Hg (II), with a detection limit as low as 6.89×10−8 M. The adsorbent also showed remarkable fluorescence stability for up to a week, indicative of its excellent optical performance. Dynamic adsorption demonstrated the adsorbent's ability to sustain continuous and stable system operation without compromising adsorption efficiency. These findings underscore the effectiveness of post-synthetic modification (PSM) technology in enhancing the performance of MOFs, while highlighting the utility of low-cost cellulose as an effective carrier. Thus, the composite material developed in this work is promising as it not only maximizes the adsorption capabilities of MOFs but also circumvents the risk of secondary pollution.

Study of the Degradation and Utilization of Cellulose from Auricularia heimuer and the Gene Expression Level of Its Decomposition Enzyme

Auricularia heimuer is a wood-rotting edible mushroom, and with the continuous development of the industry, the research on its grass-rotting cultivation is becoming more and more important. In this study, A. heimuer was cultivated using herbaceous substrate (reed) completely replacing the traditional woody substrate (oak), and the correlation between the relative expression of cellulase gene, cellulase activity, cellulose degradation and yield of different strains of A. heimuer were studied by combining qRT-PCR technology at different growth stages. The results showed that the cellulose degradation were positively correlated with the yield of reed and sawdust substrate at two growth stages, and were positively correlated with three cellulase activities. The relative expression of four cellulase genes were positively correlated with enzyme activity. There were inter-strain differences in the expression of the enzyme genes, which were basically consistent with the trend of the enzyme activity of the strains; g5372 and g7270 were more actively expressed in the mycelium period, while g9664 and g10234 were more actively expressed in the fruiting period. The results of SEM showed that the mycelium of A15 and A125 were different in their ability to degrade and utilize lignocellulose in reed substrate. The parental hybridization test further verified that qRT-PCR could be used as a rapid method to evaluate the cellulose degradation ability of A. heimuer strains. Seven strains (A12, A15, A184, A224, Z6, Z12, and Z18) with high cellulose degradation ability were screened. This study provides a reference for further understanding the role of A. heimuer cellulase genes in the degradation and metabolism of cellulose and for breeding new varieties more suitable for herbaceous substrate cultivation.

Visible light-driven selective oxidative transformation of vicinal diols using ZnS-based photocatalyst in the presence of molecular oxygen

The heterogeneous photocatalysis for the oxidative cleavage of C–C bond is significant to the transformation of biomass feedstock. In this work, a heterojunction photocatalyst based on the conductor ZnS and C3N4 (CN) material is prepared and employed in the aerobic oxidative cleavage reaction of vicinal diol under visible light irradiation. As a result, it is found that 3ZnS/CN catalyst obtained by a mechanical grinding method shows a high photocatalytic activity. In the photocatalytic oxidative cleavage process of 1-phenyl-1,2-glycol, more than 98.7% conversion of substrate with a 96.2% selectivity of benzaldehyde was attained using O2 as oxidant. In addition, the photocatalyst recycling experiments exhibited that the 3ZnS/CN catalyst still kept a good activity and stability even after being recycled for 5 times. Finally, the active reaction intermediates were investigated by the control experiments and the relative electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) detection. According to the obtained results and photocatalytic principle, the mechanism for the selective oxidative transformatioin of 1-phenyl-1,2-glycol has been proposed. It gives a promising approach for the catalytic utilization of biomass-based lignin and cellulose.

Analysis of Straw Degradation and Whole Genome of Acrophialophora multiforma.

Lignin is one of the main components in plants, which can transform value-added bioenergy and chemicals. At the same time, due to the close combination of lignin and hemicellulose in the structure, it becomes a barrier for cellulose utilization. Therefore, the effective degradation of lignin is of great significance for the utilization of these resources. In this study, the lignin degrading ability of Acrophialophora multiforma strain GZUIFR 22.397 was preliminarily investigated through straw degradation experiments and enzyme activity determination. Then, the whole genome of strain A. multiforma GZUIFR 22.397 was sequentially analyzed and annotated through multiple gene function annotation databases to comprehensively evaluate its lignin degrading potential. The results showed that the weight loss of straw reached 5.98 ± 3.95%. Laccase activity was 77.49 ± 2.65 U/L, lignin peroxidase activity was 160.57 ± 29.07 U/L, and manganese peroxidase activity was 294.83 ± 3.77 U/L. The genome of A. multiforma strain GZUIFR 22.397 spans 33.81 megabases and encompasses 9,370 genes. Among these, 6,122 genes have been annotated in the Gene Ontology (GO), 2,286 in the Cluster of Orthologous Groups of proteins (KOG), 2,283 in the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG), and 603 in the Carbohydrate Active enZYmes Database (CAZy). Concurrently, the genome analysis predicted the presence of 9 genes for laccase, 2 genes for lignin peroxidase, and 2 genes for manganese peroxidase. In summary, these results indicated that A. multiforma GZUIFR 22.397 has lignin degrading ability, and laid the foundation for deciphering the molecular mechanism of A. multiforma GZUIFR 22.397 to degrade lignin.

Swelling and dissolution behaviors of cellulose in phosphate-based ionic liquids-H2O binary systems: In-situ observation and molecular dynamics simulation

Swelling and dissolution of cellulose in ionic liquids (ILs) as the pretreatment processes are key steps for the high-value conversion and utilization of cellulose. However, the molar ratio of H2O to ILs has a significant effect on the swelling and dissolution of cellulose, and its molecular-scale mechanism is still unclear, which limits screening out the suitable ILs and recovery of ILs from coagulation bath in the spinning process. Herein, three phosphate-based ILs were chosen to couple with water as solvents for swelling and dissolution of cellulose by combining in-situ observation and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. The results show that the redissolution time of swollen cellulose is greatly reduced, especially [Emim]DEP-H2O has the best swelling and dissolution performance for cellulose due to its high β value and low viscosity. Meanwhile, when the molar ratio of IL to H2O was more than 1: -1, the IL-H2O system still has the ability to dissolve cellulose. While with the molar ratio further decreased, cellulose was no longer dissolved and began to swell, and the fiber diameter obtained the maximum swelling rate with 40.1% at a molar ratio of 1:3. Moreover, MD simulation was used to calculate the interaction between IL/water/cellulose, which further illustrated that the combination of IL with water molecular has a significant influence on the behavior of cellulose in IL-H2O systems at the molecular scale. Thus, the potential swelling and dissolution mechanism of cellulose in ILs-H2O binary systems was proposed based on experimental and simulation results. Furthermore, the characterization results of swollen cellulose indicate that the crystal structure and degree of polymerization (DP) were almost unchanged, but the specific surface area and pore size increased significantly, and the thermal stability and heat absorption were decreased, all the results prove that the swelling process increased the accessibility of cellulose and benefited to the subsequent dissolution. Consequently, preferable swelling and dissolving parameters of experiments and simulations will provide a new idea for the selection of suitable ILs and the recovery of ILs from a coagulation bath in the dry-wet spinning process.

Hemp cellulose-based aerogels and cryogels: From waste biomass to sustainable absorbent pads for food preservation

This study presents a circular economy approach utilizing hemp stems and rice straw, typically perceived as low-value agricultural waste, to develop a sustainable alternative to traditional plastic absorbent pads for food packaging. The development of an active material was achieved through the utilization of hemp cellulose and a bioactive extract isolated from rice straw. In addition to reducing plastic pollution, this material demonstrates the potential to enhance food preservation. This research provides evidence of the benefits of repurposing agricultural by-products to create valuable and environmentally-friendly products. Hemp cellulose was extracted, characterized, and processed to develop stable aerogels and cryogels through supercritical CO2 drying and freeze-drying. The water stability and internal structure of the materials were guided via TEMPO-mediated oxidation and high-pressure homogenization. Both materials showed versatile physicochemical and mechanical properties. Nevertheless, with higher water sorption (2.20 mL/g), minimal dimensional changes, and lower shrinkage, cryogels were suitable for meat absorbent pad application. To enhance the cryogels functionality, they were impregnated with a rice straw bioactive extract in two different concentrations. The incorporation of the extract did not affect the structure of the cryogels, improved their mechanical properties and the antioxidant activity remained stable after drying (63.89–78.96 %). Finally, the performance of the developed materials was compared to commercial plastic pads and pristine meat preservation challenge test during 9 days at refrigeration conditions. The incorporation of rice straw extract improved meat color preservation. While moderate extract concentrations (75 mg/g) showed a protective effect against lipid oxidation, higher levels (187.5 mg/g) induced pro-oxidant reactions. This research highlights the potential of hemp cellulose-based cryogels as sustainable and functional packaging materials for meat products.

Adding lignin to bagasse cellulose-based materials increases the wet strength and reduces micro-nano scale wet low-temperature defects

The enhancement of cellulose utilization in agricultural by-products, such as bagasse, holds significant importance in augmenting the value of secondary agricultural products. However, cellulose-based materials have limited application potential owing to their low strengths under wet and wet-low-temperature conditions. Improved mechanical properties of cellulose-based materials at wet and low temperatures can significantly enhance their suitability for application in cold chain processes. Furthermore, the effects of wet cryogenic conditions on cellulose-based materials are not well understood. In this study, composite films composed entirely of biomass are prepared via the co-solubilization of lignin and bagasse cellulose and then cured via hot pressing, which increases the wet and wet low-temperature strengths of the films. Furthermore, the mechanism by which cellulose/ lignin content influences the wet-low-temperature defects of films was investigated. Lignin self-polymerizes and hot pressing causes cross-linking in the cellulose-based films, which improves their performance in wet low-temperature environments. Furthermore, the micromorphologies, specific surface areas, and moisture distribution patterns of the cellulose films after wet -low-temperature treatment were investigated. The results indicate that cross-linking prevents large amounts of micro-nano scale free-water from entering the cellulose-based material, thereby preventing the formation of ice crystals at low temperatures, which can damage the microstructure. The results of this study can be used to develop bagasse cellulose/cellulose-based materials for applications in humid and low-temperature environments.

Comprehensive characterization and utilization of microcrystalline cellulose extracted from waste palm fruit: a biomass to biomaterial for cementitious composites

Comprehensive characterization and utilization of microcrystalline cellulose extracted from waste palm fruit: a biomass to biomaterial for cementitious composites

One-pot synthesis of γ-cyclodextrin of high purity from non-food cellulose via an in vitro ATP-free synthetic enzymatic biosystem

γ-Cyclodextrin (γ-CD) is a cyclic oligosaccharide composed of eight glucose molecules linked together via α-1,4-glycosidic bonds. It has a wide range of applications in the pharmaceutical, food, and chemical industries. Two pathways were designed for the synthesis of γ-CD from the non-food feedstock cellulose via an in vitro adenosine triphosphate (ATP) –free synthetic enzymatic biosystem. Cellulose was employed as the substrate for producing cellobiose, which was subsequently converted to γ-CD via a cascade reaction utilizing five enzymes. A stoichiometric conversion of cellulose to γ-CD was achieved by adding the synthesis module for glucose-1-phosphate (G-1-P) and optimizing the reaction conditions. The productivity of γ-CD obtained via pathway II–condition III was as high as 517 g/m3·h from cellobiose, representing a 16-fold increase compared to pathway II–condition I. A process for producing γ-CD from cellulose was established in this study, which yielded γ-CD of >90 % purity. This study presents a novel process that could be employed in next-generation biorefineries and a strategy for improving the economic considerations associated with cellulose utilization.

Application of Coffee Silverskin Cellulose/Polyacrylamide Gel Polymer Electrolytes for Rechargeable Zinc-Ion Batteries

Rechargeable zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have grown in popularity due to their low cost and the abundance of resources. However, there has been little research into the development of gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) for high voltage and capacity ZIBs. The use of agricultural waste as a polymer electrolyte (PE) is gradually increasing in order to support a circular economy. This study focuses on the utilization of cellulose derived from coffee silverskin (CS); coffee silverskin is a by-product generated during coffee roasting. We employ a reasonable approach to create the coffee silverskin cellulose (CSC)/polyacrylamide (PAM) GPE, with the goal of achieving good properties and improved battery performance. An investigation was conducted to determine the effect of CSC content in GPEs on ZIB characteristics. The cellulose derived from CS had a crystallinity index (CrI) of 64.60%. The optimal amount of cellulose added to the acrylamide monomer (AM) for the GPE of ZIB was found to be 2.5 mg (CSC/AM/salt weight ratio of 0.01/6/23). This amount resulted in the highest electrochemical stability and a cycling time of approximately 226 h. Furthermore, the PAM/Cellulose 2.5-based GPE exhibited increased Young’s modulus and tensile strength compared to the pure PAM. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) test revealed a diffusion resistance of 27.47 Ω and an ionic conductivity of 9.10 mS/cm at a temperature of 25 °C. Additionally, the use of cellulose in GPEs does not affect the electrochemical window. When the pure PAM-based GPE was compared to the CSC/PAM-based GPE, the biocomposites demonstrated electrochemical stability for a cycle life of over 200 cycles in the ZIB application.

Physical properties of isolated cellulose fiber from jute and banana fiber through kraft pulping: Potential applications in packaging and regenerated fibers

AbstractCellulose, a naturally abundant biopolymer, holds great potential as a sustainable alternative to synthetic fibers. However, the limited understanding and awareness surrounding cellulose utilization, particularly from agricultural origins, have impeded the complete harnessing of this highly biodegradable resource. This study aimed to extract and characterize cellulose from jute and banana fibers. The extracted cellulose exhibits a light yellow to white color, and microscopic analysis of the fibers showed micro‐fibrils. X‐ray diffraction (XRD) characterization indicated that the extracted cellulose from biomass primarily consists of cellulose II structures, except for the treated banana fiber (M:L = 1:8), which contains both cellulose I and II. Moreover, increasing the M:L ratio of alkali treatment enhanced the percentage of cellulose‐II, as observed from the XRD data. The findings of this study carry significant implications for the efficient production of cellulose fibers, with diverse applications spanning from high‐volume products like regenerated fibers, automotive parts, packaging, absorbent products (diapers), textiles, and precast concrete, drug delivery mediums, electronics, additive manufacturing, bone and tissue scaffolding, and so on. This research opens the door to harnessing the potential of cellulose derived from jute and banana fibers in various industries.Highlights Extraction cellulose using the kraft process. Isolated cellulose shows a micron‐sized structure. Optimal extraction achieved with M:L ratio of 1:4. Applications of isolated cellulose: regenerated fibers, packaging, absorbent products (diapers), textiles, and so on.

Rapid pyrolysis of cellulose: Revealing the role of volatile matter and char structure evolution

The complexity of the cellulose structure hinders its energy conversion and utilization. Pyrolysis is not only an independent thermochemical conversion technology but also a necessary stage in the gasification process. The real-time capture of volatile components in cellulose pyrolysis is difficult, and the evolution of char structures is lacking, which is extremely challenging. In this work, elemental analysis, industrial analysis, thermogravimetric analysis, infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy (Raman), and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD) were used to characterize the raw materials and products. Combined with rapid pyrolysis experiments, the pathways of cellulose pyrolysis volatiles and char structure evolution were explored. Dehydrated sugars are the initial products formed below 350 ℃, which quickly dehydrate to form furan compounds at 400 ℃ and then break CC bonds at 600 ℃ to generate fatty aldehydes, ketones, and carboxylic acids. Biochar generated at low temperatures (<300°C) has strong lipid solubility. An increase in pyrolysis temperature leads to a continuous decrease in the content of H and O in biochar, which destroys its functional groups and physical structure, and ultimately tends to form graphite-type char with aromatic structures. Based on the correlation between the volatile matter release characteristics and the evolution of the semichar structure, a cellulose pyrolysis pathway was established, providing theoretical support for the high-value utilization of cellulose.

Combined pretreatment of malic acid and kraft pulping for the production of fermentable sugars and highly active lignin

The separation and utilization of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in lignocellulosic biorefineries present significant challenges. This study proposes a pretreatment method for biomass refining by combining acid and kraft pulping. Firstly, the biomass was pretreated by malic acid, resulting in the isolation of xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) with a yield of 86.26 % with optimized conditions of 180 °C, 1 wt% concentration, 40 min. Secondly, a mixture of 12.98 wt% NaOH and 1.043 wt% Na2S is employed to achieve lignin removal efficiency up to 63.42 %. Physical refinement techniques are then applied to enhance the enzyme digestion efficiency of cellulose, resulting in an increase from 55.03 % to 91.4 % for efficient cellulose conversion. The reacted samples exhibit a lignin composition rich in β-O-4 ether bonds, facilitating their high-value utilization. The results indicated that the combined pretreatment approach demonstrates high efficiency in separating cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin while obtaining XOS, highly active lignin, and enzyme-digested substrates.

Cellulose Surface Nanoengineering for Visualizing Food Safety.

Food safety is vital to human health, necessitating the development of nondestructive, convenient, and highly sensitive methods for detecting harmful substances. This study integrates cellulose dissolution, aligned regeneration, in situ nanoparticle synthesis, and structural reconstitution to create flexible, transparent, customizable, and nanowrinkled cellulose/Ag nanoparticle membranes (NWCM-Ag). These three-dimensional nanowrinkled structures considerably improve the spatial-electromagnetic-coupling effect of metal nanoparticles on the membrane surface, providing a 2.3 × 108 enhancement factor for the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect for trace detection of pesticides in foods. Notably, the distribution of pesticides in the apple peel and pulp layers is visualized through Raman imaging, confirming that the pesticides penetrate the peel layer into the pulp layer (∼30 μm depth). Thus, the risk of pesticide ingestion from fruits cannot be avoided by simple washing other than peeling. This study provides a new idea for designing nanowrinkled structures and broadening cellulose utilization in food safety.

Environmentally friendly and temperature resistant water-based drilling fluids with highly inhibitory synthetic nanocellulose polymers for deep sea drilling

The ocean is rich in sustainable hydrocarbon. The process of extracting these resources poses challenges such as coexistence of low temperature and high temperature, high pressure of deepwater and unpredictable shale formations. A kind of ionic crosslinking polymer consisting of N, N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA), 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid (AMPS), and Cellulose Nanofibers (CNF) (PADC), was synthesized to address these challenges. Cellulose was first oxidized to nanocellulose (CNF) through 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinyl-1-oxide (TEMPO) oxidation. Subsequently, the ionic crosslinking polymer, consisting of DMA, AMPS, and CNF, was synthesized using ionic crosslinking polymerization. The surface characteristics and morphology were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle size analysis, and zeta potential analysis. The structural composition was analyzed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). The shale inhibition mechanism was investigated through contact angle and pressure transmission experiments. The results indicated that the average length of PADC is approximately 1450 nm, with an average diameter of less than 100 nm and contains sulfonic acid groups. The shale contact angle increased from 16.75° to 82°, indicating that PADC increased the hydrophobicity of the shale by 390%. Pressure transfer experiments show that PADC can reduce shale permeability by 37%, which means PADC has good hydration inhibition performance. In addition, a drilling fluid system suitable for deep sea drilling was proposed. The drilling fluid system exhibits good rheological properties at 160 °C and 0 °C. The fluid loss after hot rolling at 160 °C is less than 12 mL. The linear expansion of shale core after 16 h is only 0.7%, and the rolling recovery rate at 160 °C is as high as 99.48%. Luminescent bacteria EC50 is 2.0 × 105 mg/L, which means it is non-toxic and environmentally friendly. And drilling fluid conforms to the power law flow model. Therefore, the drilling fluids proposed in this paper can meet the requirements of deep sea drilling in terms of rheological properties and filtration loss properties at 0–160 °C, and can seal shale pores and inhibit shale hydration through the ionic cross-linking PADC. This research offers insights into the utilization of cellulose in well drilling processes and provides references for designing deep sea drilling fluids.

Efficient co-production of glucose and carboxylated cellulose nanocrystals from cellulose-rich biomass waste residues via low enzymatic pre-hydrolysis and persulfate oxidation

Carboxylated cellulose nanocrystals (cCNCs) can be prepared directly from biomass in a one-step ammonium persulfate (APS) oxidation. However, the cellulose in the biomass is not fully utilized because APS oxidation degrades the cellulose amorphous regions. In this paper, to improve cellulose utilization rate, a two-step method (enzymatic pre-hydrolysis and APS oxidation) was developed to co-produce fermentable sugar and cCNCs from xylooligosaccharides manufacturing waste residue (XOR) of corncob. Enzymatic pre-hydrolysis produced 26.1 g of glucose per 100 g of XOR with a cellulase loading of 5 FPU/g cellulose in 24 h. Subsequent oxidation produced 22.9 g cCNCs with 0.5 M APS in 8 h. In contrast, the one-step APS method only produced 28.3 g cCNCs per 100 g of XOR. The total cellulose utilization rate by the two-step method increased by 73 % compared to the one-step APS method. Structural characteristics of cCNCs prepared by the two-step method were slightly different from those of the one-step method, but good properties were maintained. Therefore, the co-production method could prepare glucose and cCNCs with stable properties from XOR with a greatly improved cellulose utilization rate.

Soil-derived cellulose-degrading bacteria: screening, identification, the optimization of fermentation conditions, and their whole genome sequencing.

Straw cellulose is an abundant renewable resource in nature. In recent years, the conversion of cellulose from waste straw into biofuel by specific microorganisms' fragmentation has attracted extensive attention. Although many bacteria with the ability to degrade cellulose have been identified, comprehensive bioinformatics analyses of these bacteria remain limited, and research exploring optimal fragmentation conditions is scarce. Our study involved the isolation and screening of bacteria from various locations in Yangzhou using carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) media. Then, the cellulose-degrading bacteria were identified using 16S rRNA and seven candidate bacterial strains with cellulose degrading ability were identified in Yangzhou city for the first time. The cellulase activity was determined by the 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid (DNS) method in different fragmentation conditions, and finally two bacteria strains with the strongest cellulose degradation ability were selected for whole genome sequencing analysis. Sequencing results revealed that the genome sizes of Rhodococcus wratislaviensis YZ02 and Pseudomonas Xanthosomatis YZ03 were 8.51 Mb and 6.66 Mb, containing 8,466 and 5,745 genes, respectively. A large number of cellulose degradation-related genes were identified and annotated using KEGG, GO and COG analyses. In addition, genomic CAZyme analysis indicated that both R. wratislaviensis YZ02 and P. Xanthosomatis YZ03 harbor a series of glycoside hydrolase family (GH) genes and other genes related to cellulose degradation. Our finding provides new options for the development of cellulose-degrading bacteria and a theoretical basis for improving the cellulose utilization of straw.

Preparation of electrospun cellulose acetate/chitosan membranes for efficient sorption of heavy metals from aqueous solutions

Guided by efficient utilization of natural abundant cellulose and chitosan as separation materials, it is desired to tailor the composition of electrospun cellulose acetate/chitosan (CL/CS) membranes to achieve their optimal application in the management of aquatic heavy metal pollution. In this work, CL/CS membranes with enhanced surface area of 11.3–38.6 m2/g were successfully fabricated via electrospinning technique by dissolving cellulose acetate and chitosan into the environmental-friendly electrospinning solvent of LiOH/thiourea/H2O. Electrospun CL/CS membranes allowed the efficient sorption of Cr(VI), Pb(II) and Cu(II) with favorable kinetics (8.0 h), and excellent capacities (127.6 mg/g for Cr(VI), 66.2 mg/g for Pb(II), 46.7 mg/g for Cu(II) at pH 5.0, T 298 K). Meanwhile, they presented favorable efficiencies in the removal of these multiple heavy metals from acid simulated wastewaters. The spectroscopic analysis results indicated that the sorption mechanism should be dominant by the surface complexation of heavy metals with hydroxyl O-/amino N-species, the electrostatic attraction (protonated NH3+ with negatively charged HCrO4-, deprotonated O- with positively charged Pb(II) and Cu(II)), as well as the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) by surface reductive N-species. This work demonstrated the feasibility of electrospun CL/CS membranes as a promising choice for the remediation of aquatic heavy metals.