Mechanochemical Top-Down Isolation of Chitin Nanofibrils from Oyster Mushrooms

A structural roadmap to gut health: A comprehensive review of edible insect chitin-protein complexes as alternative protein-derived, structure-specific prebiotics.

The structure–property relationship of chitin nanofibrils (NCh) with tailored lengths (L-, M-, S-NCh) and their efficacy in stabilizing Pickering emulsions were systematically investigated. The nanofibrils, produced via high-pressure homogenization and ultrasonication (20 or 60 min), were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Emulsion stability was predominantly governed by nanofibril length and concentration, with S-NCh (shortest) exhibiting superior performance, as evidenced by its minimal creaming index, smallest droplet size (1.18 μm at 0.5%), and homogeneous microstructure observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). A critical stabilizer concentration of 0.05% was identified, below which instability occurred due to insufficient interfacial coverage. Rheological analysis confirmed shear-thinning behavior and solid-like viscoelasticity at high frequencies. CLSM microstructural observations directly confirmed nanofibril adsorption at the interface and the formation of a continuous network between droplets, elucidating the stabilization mechanism. These findings demonstrate that shorter chitin nanofibrils provide a marked improvement in emulsion stability, offering a superior biomass-derived alternative for the design of stabilizers in food and pharmaceutical applications.

Soft, bio-inspired chitin/protein nanocomposites - mechanical behavior and interface interactions between recombinant resilin-like proteins and chitin nanofibrils.

Green bleaching of fungal nanochitin to enhance the functional properties of food packaging materials.

Food packaging films containing biobased fillers can offer improved functional properties while meeting current environmental sustainability requirements for a circular and sustainable society. In this work, biocomposites based on chitin nanofibers and PVA have been developed in order to improve the mechanical performance and water barrier properties, performing for the first time a life cycle assessment. The biocolloids employed are chitin nanofibrils (ChNFs) from fungi, an underutilized renewable carbon feedstock in packaging, which are more environmentally friendly than conventional ChNFs obtained from crustaceans. Free-standing nanocomposite films are obtained by solvent casting, using water as the sole solvent. The incorporation of ChNFs results in a mechanical reinforcing effect of PVA that increases the Young modulus. The water vapor barrier character of PVA is significantly enhanced by the presence of ChNFs, which is decreased by 70% upon the incorporation of 10% ChNFs, overcoming one of the most significant drawbacks of PVA. The nanocomposites maintain an excellent oxygen barrier character under high relative humidity. Life cycle assessment (LCA) reveals a global warming potential of 5.0-5.2 kg·CO2 equiv·kg-1 for PVA/ChNFs films, demonstrating clear environmental benefits of the incorporation of ChNFs when considering the final properties. Overall, this work highlights the potential of fungal ChNFs to improve the mechanical properties and significantly improve the water barrier character of PVA, overcoming one of the limitations of this material in a sustainable way, as demonstrated by LCA.

Hybrid biopolymer/metal–organic framework 3D-sponges towards the capture of the ‘big five’ heavy metals

Ternary eutectic solvents facilitate the production of well-dispersed chitin-glucan nanofibrils from shiitake mushrooms.

Chitin nanofibril (ChNF)-based films, known for their renewability and biodegradability, are limited by their poor water resistance. Herein, a green, facile, and scalable strategy was proposed to enhance their water resistance as well as mechanical properties. The succinic acid (SA) in place of commonly used monocarboxylic acid was used first as a proton donor to facilitate disintegration of chitin into ChNFs or chitin microfibrils (ChMFs), and subsequently as a latent thermo-cross-linking agent to covalently cross-link the ChNF/SA cast films by a simple heat treatment, achieving the swelling degree (SD) as low as 96.5 ± 8.3% and tensile strength (TS) up to 104.06 ± 6.75 MPa. Based on that, ChMF as a long-range entanglement contributor was incorporated to yield the ChNMF/SA cast films, further reducing SD to 71.3 ± 4.2% and improving wet-state TS from 7.6 ± 1.1 to 10.6 ± 0.4 MPa. To expand application scenarios, tannic acid (TA) as a functional additive was introduced and endowed the resultant films (ChNMF/SA/TA) with excellent antioxidant, antibacterial, UV-shielding, and strawberry-preservation performances. In brief, this study demonstrated a simple method to create water-resistant, mechanically robust ChNF-based films with great potential for sustainable fruit packaging application.

Nanomaterials-based Pickering foams: Stabilization, morphology, rheology, and perspectives.

The rapid growth of electronic waste (E-waste) poses significant environmental challenges and presents an opportunity for sustainable metal recovery. Addressing the gap in E-waste management and green catalyst development, this study repurposes waste electronic memory chips from old laboratory PCs to synthesize metal-based catalysts. Metals were extracted via acid leaching and supported on a composite of metal oxide (CeO2, Al2O3, SiO2) and carbon derived from chitin (CHT), forming the Cu@MO/CHT catalyst. The Cu@CeO2/CHT catalyst exhibited 100% selectivity in the hydrogenation of biomass-derived –C═O compounds, including furfural, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, vanillin, levulinic acid, ethyl levulinate, syringaldehyde, and N-heterocyclic compounds such as quinoline. The Cu@CeO2/CHT catalyst was efficient at the millimole and the gram scale. XPS, Raman spectroscopy, and HRTEM analyses suggest the role of oxygen vacancies in CeO2, promoting selective adsorption of C═O groups. Metal content in the E-waste leachate and catalyst was determined using MP-AES, and the catalyst maintained high activity over at least five consecutive cycles. Furthermore, the use of green solvents, such as ethanol, aligns the process with sustainable chemistry principles, minimizing environmental impact. This study demonstrates the dual benefits of E-waste recycling and green catalyst development, offering a pathway to sustainable biomass valorisation. This work addresses the global E-waste crisis and the need for eco-friendly, scalable catalytic processes by converting E-waste into valuable catalytic materials.

A conventional chemical method was applied for the extraction of chitosan (CH) from shrimp shell wastes (SSWs) in three stages: (1) Demineralization: SSWs were treated with HCl to remove minerals. (2) Deproteinization: NaOH was used to eliminate proteins from the demineralization shells. 3: Deacetylation: The chitin (CT) obtained from stage 2 was converted to chitosan in alkaline medium using NaOH. This study aims to demonstrate the impact of varying deacetylation times on chitosan surface morphology, elemental composition, thermal resistance, structural configuration, and deacetylation degree (DD). Variable techniques including UV-visible spectroscopy, Fourier Transformed Infra-Red (FTIR-ATR), Thermogravimetry (TG/DTG), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analyses were employed to analyze how increased deacetylation periods affect the characterization of the products. The FTIR spectra showed a notable similarity between all extracted chitosan processed with increasing deacetylation time and the commercial one. Moreover, the results revealed that all the extracted chitosan samples acquired DD values, based on FTIR-ATR analysis, are comparable to that of commercial ones i.e. 79.54%, 78.23%, 74.81%, and 76.56% for deacetylated times of 22h, 30h, 36h, and 40h, respectively are comparable to that of the commercial chitosan (76.1%). Furthermore, the EDX analysis confirms that the extracted chitosan is non-toxic product, making it suitable for various applications, including biological and medical uses.

Structure and nanotoxicity of fungal chitin-glucan nanofibrils with gradient acid and alkaline treatments.

Enhancing adhesive properties with unmodified and phosphate-modified chitin in particleboard production.

Artificial neural network-based fungal chitin production for submicron-chitosan synthesis: effects on bioremediation for heavy metal pollution.

This study develops sustainable, antibacterial food packaging films using carboxymethylcellulose and fungi-derived chitin nanofibrils (ChNFs) reinforced with clay to enhance mechanical strength, moisture resistance, and gas barrier properties. ChNFs significantly improve tensile strength and permeability by forming a dense, hydrogen-bonded network within the carboxymethylcellulose matrix. However, excessive ChNF content led to agglomeration, reducing mechanical performance slightly. At 30% ChNFs content, films demonstrated antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli , Staphylococcus aureus , and Listeria monocytogenes and also presented a 52.1 ± 3.2% degradation rate in four weeks. Life cycle assessment revealed a reduced carbon footprint (5.0–5.3 kg CO₂-equiv. per kg film) and low plastic litter generation (35–44 g/kg), underscoring environmental benefits compared to conventional packaging. These carboxymethylcellulose/ChNF-based films are a promising, eco-friendly alternative for food packaging applications, offering antibacterial properties and enhanced sustainability in the packaging of perishable food products. • Sustainable packaging films with fungal-derived chitin nanofibrils (ChNFs) developed. • ChNFs improve strength, moisture resistance, and gas barrier properties. • ChNFs have antibacterial activity against E. coli , S. aureus , and L. monocytogenes . • Life cycle assessment reveals a lower carbon footprint than conventional materials. • Films degrade by 52.1% during 4 weeks in soil burial, supporting biodegradability.

Hydrochars of mixed marine biomass and plastic wastes: Carbonization scenarios and the performance as ketoprofen adsorbents.

Identifying barriers to scaled-up production and commercialization of chitin and chitosan using green technologies: A review and quantitative green chemistry assessment.

Facile isolating of chitin nanofibril from silkworm chrysalis and its potential application in structuring oil

Selectively oxidized chitin as a degradable and biocompatible hemostat for uncontrolled bleeding and wound healing.