New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Synthesis, Interfaces and Nanostructures".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 July 2021) | Viewed by 15836

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Osaka University, Suita, Japan
Interests: cellulose nanofiber materials, wood science, flexible eletrinics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) are lightweight and strong nanofibers made from plants. It is typically made by wood pulp, which is further fibrillated to nano levels to make cellulose nanofibers.

In the last decade, the polymer composites reinforced with CNFs have received as much attention as structural materials. Cars made by CNFs, or Nano Cellulose Vehicles, were first released in the Tokyo Motor Show 2019. Over twenty Japanese organizations, including universities, research institutes, and automotive manufacturers, worked together to put the technology to practical use. This achievement was born from some scientific articles about the cellulose nanofiber research.

As you know, CNFs number their light weight and high strength among their properties; they may be applied in polymer composites and vehicles. The latest CNF research has discovered new knowledge or technologies of nanofibrillation reactions, the properties of suspension, the compounding processes, and advanced applications for energy and electronics and so on. Now, we believe, this Special Issue containing your results and opinions will open the next horizon of CNF research and take on the challenge of achieving the SDGs.

This Special Issue aims to cover a broad range of CNFs and their materials from academic or industrial scientific views. Perspectives, review articles, full paper, short communication, and technical papers on this topic are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Masaya Nogi
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • evaluations of nanocellulose (cellulose nanofiber, cellulose nanocrystals, micro-fibrillated cellulose, bacterial cellulose)
  • lignocellulose and related biopolymers
  • nanofibrillation process and the starting pulps or plants
  • nanocellulose suspensions and emulsions
  • polymers composites: their compounding process and the mechanical properties
  • functional nanocellulose materials by adding of organic/inorganic materials
  • nanocellulose film or foams: their process, properties and applications
  • advanced nanocellulose applications for energy, electric device, clean water, human health, sustainable life below water and on land

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 4209 KiB  
Article
Comparison of Effects of Sodium Chloride and Potassium Chloride on Spray Drying and Redispersion of Cellulose Nanofibrils Suspension
by Guihua Yang, Guangrui Ma, Ming He, Xingxiang Ji, Weidong Li, Hye Jung Youn, Hak Lae Lee and Jiachuan Chen
Nanomaterials 2021, 11(2), 439; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11020439 - 9 Feb 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3232
Abstract
Cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) were exposed to the same levels of potassium chloride (KCl) and sodium chloride (NaCl) before being subjected to spray drying. The effect of NaCl and KCl on the size of atomized droplets and the hydrogen bond retardation between CNFs was [...] Read more.
Cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) were exposed to the same levels of potassium chloride (KCl) and sodium chloride (NaCl) before being subjected to spray drying. The effect of NaCl and KCl on the size of atomized droplets and the hydrogen bond retardation between CNFs was investigated by characterizing product morphology, particle size distribution, dispersion stability in aqueous system, and surface chemistry. The results showed that the CNF suspensions treated with KCl could be atomized into smaller droplets during spray drying, and then CNF powder with smaller sizes could be obtained. As the agglomeration was less, and the CNF with KCl addition had good dispersion stability after redispersion compared with CNF treated by NaCl. Therefore, KCl treatment was an effective method to reduce the agglomeration of CNF during spray drying. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials)
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10 pages, 1932 KiB  
Article
High-Speed Fabrication of Clear Transparent Cellulose Nanopaper by Applying Humidity-Controlled Multi-Stage Drying Method
by Chenyang Li, Takaaki Kasuga, Kojiro Uetani, Hirotaka Koga and Masaya Nogi
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(11), 2194; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10112194 - 4 Nov 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3181
Abstract
As a renewable nanomaterial, transparent nanopaper is one of the promising materials for electronic devices. Although conventional evaporation drying method endows nanopaper with superior optical properties, the long fabrication time limits its widely use. In this work, we propose a multi-stage drying method [...] Read more.
As a renewable nanomaterial, transparent nanopaper is one of the promising materials for electronic devices. Although conventional evaporation drying method endows nanopaper with superior optical properties, the long fabrication time limits its widely use. In this work, we propose a multi-stage drying method to achieve high-speed fabrication of clear transparent nanopaper. Drying experiments reveal that nanopaper’s drying process can be separated into two periods. For the conventional single-stage evaporation drying, the drying condition is kept the same. In our newly proposed multi-stage drying, the relative humidity (RH), which is the key parameter for both drying time and haze, is set differently during these two periods. Applying this method in a humidity-controllable environmental chamber, the drying time can be shortened by 35% (from 11.7 h to 7.6 h) while maintaining the same haze level as that from single-stage drying. For a conventional humidity-uncontrollable oven, a special air flow system is added. The air flow system enables decrease of RH by removing water vapor at the water/air interface during the earlier period, thus fabricating clear transparent nanopaper in a relatively short time. Therefore, this humidity-controlled multi-stage drying method will help reduce the manufacturing time and encourage the widespread use of future nanopaper-based flexible electronics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials)
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14 pages, 3451 KiB  
Article
pH-Responsive Properties of Asymmetric Nanopapers of Nanofibrillated Cellulose
by Maud Chemin, Baptiste Beaumal, Bernard Cathala and Ana Villares
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(7), 1380; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10071380 - 15 Jul 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2360
Abstract
Inspired by plant movements driven by the arrangement of cellulose, we have fabricated nanopapers of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) showing actuation under pH changes. Bending was achieved by a concentration gradient of charged groups along the film thickness. Hence, the resulting nanopapers contained higher [...] Read more.
Inspired by plant movements driven by the arrangement of cellulose, we have fabricated nanopapers of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) showing actuation under pH changes. Bending was achieved by a concentration gradient of charged groups along the film thickness. Hence, the resulting nanopapers contained higher concentration of charged groups on one side of the film than on the opposite side, so that pH changes resulted in charge-dependent asymmetric deprotonation of the two layers. Electrostatic repulsions separate the nanofibers in the nanopaper, thus facilitating an asymmetric swelling and the subsequent expanding that results in bending. Nanofibrillated cellulose was modified by 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-1-yloxyl radical (TEMPO) oxidation at two reaction times to get different surface concentrations of carboxylic acid groups. TEMPO-oxidized NFC was further chemically transformed into amine-modified NFC by amidation. The formation of graded nanopapers was accomplished by successive filtration of NFC dispersions with varying charge nature and/or concentration. The extent of bending was controlled by the charge concentration and the nanopaper thickness. The direction of bending was tuned by the layer composition (carboxylic acid or amine groups). In all cases, a steady-state was achieved within less than 25 s. This work opens new routes for the use of cellulosic materials as actuators. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials)
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10 pages, 3194 KiB  
Article
Checkered Films of Multiaxis Oriented Nanocelluloses by Liquid-Phase Three-Dimensional Patterning
by Kojiro Uetani, Hirotaka Koga and Masaya Nogi
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(5), 958; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10050958 - 18 May 2020
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3898
Abstract
It is essential to build multiaxis oriented nanocellulose films in the plane for developing thermal or optical management films. However, using conventional orientation techniques, it is difficult to align nanocelluloses in multiple directions within the plane of single films rather than in the [...] Read more.
It is essential to build multiaxis oriented nanocellulose films in the plane for developing thermal or optical management films. However, using conventional orientation techniques, it is difficult to align nanocelluloses in multiple directions within the plane of single films rather than in the thickness direction like the chiral nematic structure. In this study, we developed the liquid-phase three-dimensional (3D) patterning technique by combining wet spinning and 3D printing. Using this technique, we produced a checkered film with multiaxis oriented nanocelluloses. This film showed similar retardation levels, but with orthogonal molecular axis orientations in each checkered domain as programmed. The thermal transport was enhanced in the domain with the oriented pattern parallel to the heat flow. This liquid-phase 3D patterning technique could pave the way for bottom-up design of differently aligned nanocellulose films to develop sophisticated optical and thermal materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials)
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13 pages, 5860 KiB  
Article
Mechanical Characterization on Solvent Treated Cellulose Nanofiber Preforms Using Solution Dipping–Hot Press Technique
by Devendran Thirunavukarasu, Yoshinobu Shimamura, Keiichiro Tohgo and Tomoyuki Fujii
Nanomaterials 2020, 10(5), 841; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10050841 - 29 Apr 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2519
Abstract
Nanocomposites films were prepared by impregnating the solvent treated cellulose nanofiber (SCNF) preforms with epoxy resin using a solution dipping–hot press technique. We investigated the effect of SCNF preforms porosity on the amount of impregnated resin and tensile properties of the corresponding nanocomposites [...] Read more.
Nanocomposites films were prepared by impregnating the solvent treated cellulose nanofiber (SCNF) preforms with epoxy resin using a solution dipping–hot press technique. We investigated the effect of SCNF preforms porosity on the amount of impregnated resin and tensile properties of the corresponding nanocomposites films. The porosity of the CNF preforms was successfully controlled using the solvent exchange with varying CNF concentration. The impregnated resin amount increased as the SCNF preforms porosity increased, respectively. Resulting nanocomposite films showed higher mechanical properties than that of the SCNF preforms. The best mechanical properties of composites were found with the combination of 1 wt % SCNF preform and low viscosity epoxy, exhibiting tensile strength and Young’s modulus of 77 MPa and 4.8 GPa, respectively. The composite also showed high fiber volume fraction of more than 60%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Horizon in Cellulose Nanofiber and Its Materials)
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