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Chemistry of Lignin-Based Materials

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Macromolecular Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2025) | Viewed by 4215

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: biorefineries; biomass; lignin isolation and characterization; extractives; analytical pyrolysis; analytical methods
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Interests: biorefineries; biomass fractionation and characterization; energetic crops; biomass & bioenergy; pulp and paper; wood chemistry; extractives; lignin
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Lignin is the second most important polymer in lignocellulosic materials, such as biomass. The valorization of biomass under biorefinery concepts, the circular economy and zero-waste philosophy, passes through the valorization of its cell wall constituents, in particular lignin. The use of lignin presents many advantages (it is a natural resource, is biodegradable, has low toxicity for some applications, has high carbon content) as well as some disadvantages (e.g., recalcitrant polymer and has different types of functional groups).

So, lignin valorization and applications represent a challenge to researchers. In this Special Issue, we invite our colleagues to present their works related to lignin characterization and valorization, emphasizing lignin applications for so-called lignin-based materials (e.g., hydrogels, lignin nanoparticles, adhesives, etc.).

Dr. Ana Lourenço
Dr. Jorge Gominho
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • lignin characteristics
  • separation methods
  • multi-analytical approach
  • lignin applications
  • biorefinery & zero-waste philosophy

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 11240 KiB  
Article
Analysis of the Pyrolysis Kinetics, Reaction Mechanisms, and By-Products of Rice Husk and Rice Straw via TG-FTIR and Py-GC/MS
by Li Lin, Yang E, Qiang Sun, Yixuan Chen, Wanning Dai, Zhengrong Bao, Weisheng Niu and Jun Meng
Molecules 2025, 30(1), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30010010 - 24 Dec 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1092
Abstract
This study employed thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and pyrolysis gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) to characterize and provide insights into the pyrolysis behaviors and by-products of rice husk (RH) and rice straw (RS). The primary pyrolysis range is partitioned into [...] Read more.
This study employed thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and pyrolysis gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) to characterize and provide insights into the pyrolysis behaviors and by-products of rice husk (RH) and rice straw (RS). The primary pyrolysis range is partitioned into three stages, designated as pseudo-hemicellulose, pseudo-cellulose, and pseudo-lignin pyrolysis, by an asymmetric bi-Gaussian function. The average activation energies of the three pseudo-components of RH were estimated by the Flynn–Wall–Ozawa and Starink methods to be 179.1 kJ/mol, 187.4 kJ/mol, and 239.3 kJ/mol, respectively. The corresponding values for RS were 171.8 kJ/mol, 185.8 kJ/mol, and 203.2 kJ/mol. The results of the model-fitting method indicated that the diffusion model is the most appropriate for describing the pseudo-hemicellulose reaction. The reaction of pseudo-cellulose and pseudo-lignin is most accurately described by a nucleation mechanism. An accelerated heating rate resulted in enhanced pyrolysis performance, with RS exhibiting superior performance to that of RH. RH produces 107 condensable pyrolysis by-products, with ketones, acids, and phenols representing the largest proportion; RS produces 135 species, with ketones, phenols, and alcohols as the main condensable by-products. These high-value added by-products have the potential to be utilized in a variety of applications within the agricultural, bioenergy, and chemical industries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemistry of Lignin-Based Materials)
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18 pages, 3939 KiB  
Article
Valorisation of Lignocellulosic Wastes, the Case Study of Eucalypt Stumps Lignin as Bioadsorbent for the Removal of Cr(VI)
by Ana Lourenço, Dragana Kukić, Vesna Vasić, Ricardo A. Costa, Mirjana Antov, Marina Šćiban and Jorge Gominho
Molecules 2022, 27(19), 6246; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27196246 - 22 Sep 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2303
Abstract
The main objective of this work was to assess Eucalyptus globulus lignin as an adsorbent and compare the results with kraft lignin, which has previously been demonstrated to be an effective adsorbent. Eucalypt lignin was extracted (by the dioxane technique), characterised, and its [...] Read more.
The main objective of this work was to assess Eucalyptus globulus lignin as an adsorbent and compare the results with kraft lignin, which has previously been demonstrated to be an effective adsorbent. Eucalypt lignin was extracted (by the dioxane technique), characterised, and its adsorption properties for Cr(VI) ions were evaluated. The monomeric composition of both types of lignin indicated a high content of guaiacyl (G) and syringyl (S) units but low content of p-hydroxyphenyl (H), with an H:G:S ratio of 1:50:146 (eucalypt lignin) and 1:16:26 (kraft lignin), as determined by Py-GC/MS. According to elemental analysis, sulphur (2%) and sodium (1%) were found in kraft lignin, but not in eucalypt lignin. The adsorption capacity of the eucalypt lignin was notably higher than the kraft lignin during the first 8 h, but practically all the ions had been absorbed by both the eucalypt and kraft lignin after 24 h (93.4% and 95%, respectively). Cr(VI) adsorption onto both lignins fitted well using the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model, with capacities of 256.4 and 303.0 mg/g, respectively, for eucalypt and kraft. The study’s overall results demonstrate the great potential of eucalypt lignin as a biosorbent for Cr(VI) removal from aqueous solutions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Chemistry of Lignin-Based Materials)
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