Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers

Asadullah,; Ngiwngam, Kittaporn; Han, Jaejoon; Rachtanapun, Pornchai; Auras, Rafael; Karbowiak, Thomas; Noiwan, Duangjai; Thongngam, Masubon; Tongdeesoontorn, Wirongrong

doi:10.3390/polym16213081

Open AccessArticle

Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers

by

Asadullah

^1,2,3,4,

Kittaporn Ngiwngam

^1,2,

Jaejoon Han

⁵,

Pornchai Rachtanapun

^6,7,8

,

Rafael Auras

^9,*

,

Thomas Karbowiak

¹⁰

,

Duangjai Noiwan

¹¹,

Masubon Thongngam

¹²

and

Wirongrong Tongdeesoontorn

^1,2,*

¹

School of Agro-Industry, Mae Fah Luang University, 333 Moo 1 Tasud, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand

²

Research Center of Innovative Food Packaging and Biomaterials Unit, Mae Fah Luang University, 333 Moo 1 Tasud, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand

³

School of Chemical Engineering, Institute of Engineering, Suranaree University of Technology, 111 University Avenue, Nakhon Ratchasima 30000, Thailand

⁴

Research Center of Chemical Engineering Department, Balochistan University of Informational Technology, Engineering and Management Sciences, Quetta 87300, Pakistan

⁵

Department of Food Bioscience and Technology, College of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea

⁶

Division of Packaging Technology, School of Agro-Industry, Faculty of Agro-Industry, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand

⁷

The Cluster of Agro Bio-Circular-Green Industry (Agro BCG), Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50100, Thailand

⁸

Center of Excellence in Materials Science and Technology, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand

⁹

School of Packaging, Michigan State University, 448 Wilson Rd, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA

¹⁰

Institut Agro, INRAe, UMR PAM 1517, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 1 Esplanade Erasme, 21000 Dijon, France

¹¹

Department of Postharvest Technology, Faculty of Engineering and Agro-Industry, Maejo University, Chiang Mai 50290, Thailand

¹²

Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agro-Industry, Kasetsart University, Bangkok 10900, Thailand

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Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Polymers 2024, 16(21), 3081; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16213081

Submission received: 21 August 2024 / Revised: 2 October 2024 / Accepted: 29 October 2024 / Published: 31 October 2024

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functional Polymers: Interaction, Surface, Processing and Applications: 2nd Edition)

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Abstract

This study involved producing aerogels using activated carbon (AC) and nanocellulose (NC). Two distinct structured composites, AC composite aerogel (ACCA) and NC composite aerogel (NCCA), were developed by separately mixing AC and NC with identical proportions of cross-linked biopolymers: hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), methylcellulose (MC), and chitosan (C). These aerogels were evaluated for their capability to adsorb ethylene gas through batch experiments, while the physical and chemical characteristics were thoroughly examined to determine their feasibility of removing ethylene. The resulting ACCA and NCCA aerogels exhibited low densities of 0.094 g cm⁻³ and 0.077 g cm⁻³, respectively, coupled with high porosity ranging between 95 and 96%. During the ethylene adsorption test, NCCA exhibited superior ethylene removal rates (~14.88–16.77 mL kg⁻¹) compared to ACCA (~13.57–14.97 mL kg⁻¹). Specifically, NCCA achieved a removal efficiency of 83.86% compared to 74.64% for ACCA. Kinetic model fitting yielded high R² values ranging from 0.97 to 0.98 with the Lagergren kinetic model. These findings suggest the potential of composite aerogels to be incorporated into food packaging materials for dynamic ethylene capture, independent of environmental conditions, thereby providing promising routes for further development.

Keywords: activated carbon; nanocellulose; aerogel; ethylene gas; biopolymer; macadamia nutshell

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MDPI and ACS Style

Asadullah; Ngiwngam, K.; Han, J.; Rachtanapun, P.; Auras, R.; Karbowiak, T.; Noiwan, D.; Thongngam, M.; Tongdeesoontorn, W. Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers. Polymers 2024, 16, 3081. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16213081

AMA Style

Asadullah, Ngiwngam K, Han J, Rachtanapun P, Auras R, Karbowiak T, Noiwan D, Thongngam M, Tongdeesoontorn W. Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers. Polymers. 2024; 16(21):3081. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16213081

Chicago/Turabian Style

Asadullah, Kittaporn Ngiwngam, Jaejoon Han, Pornchai Rachtanapun, Rafael Auras, Thomas Karbowiak, Duangjai Noiwan, Masubon Thongngam, and Wirongrong Tongdeesoontorn. 2024. "Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers" Polymers 16, no. 21: 3081. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16213081

APA Style

Asadullah, Ngiwngam, K., Han, J., Rachtanapun, P., Auras, R., Karbowiak, T., Noiwan, D., Thongngam, M., & Tongdeesoontorn, W. (2024). Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers. Polymers, 16(21), 3081. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16213081

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Creation of Composite Aerogels Consisting of Activated Carbon and Nanocellulose Blended with Cross-Linked Biopolymers: Application as Ethylene Scavengers

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