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Polymers
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Lignin-Based Functional Materials
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Lignin-Based Functional Materials

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Smart and Functional Polymers".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 January 2026 | Viewed by 2791

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Jingyu Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Green Chemistry and Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Chemistry, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610064, China
Interests: lignin; supramolecular self-assembly; nanoparticles; atomic force microscopy; biomass materials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,
As the demand for sustainable and green manufacturing continues to grow in the functional materials sector, manufacturers are exploring renewable, biocompatible, and biodegradable resources as an alternative to petrochemical resources for the preparation of advanced materials. Lignin is a type of important and sustainable plant biomass resource, which possesses many remarkable features such as ultraviolet-shielding properties, photothermal conversion capability, antioxidant properties, and fluorescence performance. Recent advancements have demonstrated the promising potential of lignin-based functional materials in the energy, optical, biological, architecture, and cosmetics fields.

This Special Issue focuses on the novel achievements in the fundamental science, manufacturing technology, structural design and regulation, characterization, and application of lignin-based functional materials.  Research studies in which sufficiently significant scientific innovations about lignin-based materials are involved are encouraged to submit their work, in the form of a review, research article, or communication, for publication in this Special Issue of Polymers.

Dr. Jingyu Wang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • lignin
  • functional materials
  • nanoparticles
  • polymers

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2793 KB  
Article
Influence of Epichlorohydrin Concentration on the Physicochemical and Rheological Performance of Lignin/PVA Hydrogels
by Nazish Jabeen, Paula G. Garnero, Rafael Muñoz-Espí, Clara M. Gómez and Mario Culebras
Polymers 2025, 17(23), 3223; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17233223 - 3 Dec 2025
Viewed by 329
Abstract
This study investigates the influence of epichlorohydrin (EPCH) concentration on the rheological, mechanical, and swelling properties of lignin/PVA hydrogels. Hydrogels were prepared with EPCH concentrations ranging from 2.5% to 7.5%, and their viscoelastic properties were characterized through oscillatory strain and frequency sweep rheology. [...] Read more.
This study investigates the influence of epichlorohydrin (EPCH) concentration on the rheological, mechanical, and swelling properties of lignin/PVA hydrogels. Hydrogels were prepared with EPCH concentrations ranging from 2.5% to 7.5%, and their viscoelastic properties were characterized through oscillatory strain and frequency sweep rheology. Increasing the EPCH concentration led to a substantial rise in mechanical stiffness, with the compressive modulus increasing from 21 kPa (2.5%) to 275 kPa (7.5%), accompanied by a marked reduction in swelling capacity from 460% to 190%. This behavior is attributed to the formation of a denser and more interconnected network structure with increasing cross-linking density. Furthermore, a strong correlation was observed between EPCH concentration and gelation kinetics, with higher concentrations generally leading to faster gelation times. In all formulations, gel time consistently decreased as the temperature increased from 10 to 50 °C. The optimal EPCH concentration for achieving a balance between mechanical properties and processability was determined to be 3.5%. At this concentration, the hydrogels exhibited a favorable combination of mechanical strength, shape recovery, and processability, while maintaining desirable swelling behavior. These findings provide valuable insights into the critical role of cross-linking density in determining the physicochemical properties of lignin/PVA hydrogels, paving the way for the development of these bio-based materials with tailored properties for diverse applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lignin-Based Functional Materials)
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18 pages, 1710 KB  
Article
Thermal, Rheological, and Moisture Absorption Behaviours of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)/Lignin Composites
by Erdem Selver, Ayca Dogrul Selver, Abu Saifullah, Zhongyi Zhang and Hom N. Dhakal
Polymers 2025, 17(21), 2918; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17212918 - 31 Oct 2025
Viewed by 1082
Abstract
Lignin and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) polymer have both been used as biodegradable materials for many years, enabling the development of eco-friendly composite structures. In this study, a PVA polymer was blended with different proportions of lignin ranging from 0.5 wt% to 10 wt% [...] Read more.
Lignin and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) polymer have both been used as biodegradable materials for many years, enabling the development of eco-friendly composite structures. In this study, a PVA polymer was blended with different proportions of lignin ranging from 0.5 wt% to 10 wt% and their thermal, rheological and moisture absorption behaviours were analysed and compared. According to rheology tests, addition of lignin decreased the viscosity of PVA up to 25% by creating plasticization effect. Thermal tests reveal that the addition of lignin had no significant effect on the melting behaviour of the PVA polymer. However, the amount of char residue increased from 0.48% to 4.15% as the lignin content increased to 10 wt%, indicating improved thermal stability of the PVA polymer. The hydrophobic nature of lignin particles helped to reduce the moisture absorption of PVA polymers up to 6% especially at high wt% lignin loadings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lignin-Based Functional Materials)
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19 pages, 4609 KB  
Article
Evaluation of Acidic Deep Eutectic Solvents Treatment on Enzymatic Hydrolysis Lignins: Structural Analysis and Antioxidant Activity
by Qiaorun Ma, Xun Meng, Hongtao Shi, Lian Chen, Jiangyao Han, Lifen Li and Liping Yu
Polymers 2025, 17(8), 1006; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym17081006 - 8 Apr 2025
Viewed by 1094
Abstract
The high-value utilization of enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (EHL) is essential for promoting the development of the biorefinery industry. This study investigated the enhancement of the antioxidant activity and ultraviolet (UV) absorption capacity of EHL through treatment with choline chloride (ChCl)-based acidic deep eutectic [...] Read more.
The high-value utilization of enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (EHL) is essential for promoting the development of the biorefinery industry. This study investigated the enhancement of the antioxidant activity and ultraviolet (UV) absorption capacity of EHL through treatment with choline chloride (ChCl)-based acidic deep eutectic solvents (DESs). The yield, chemical structure, UV absorption properties, antioxidant activity, and thermal stability of the degraded and regenerated enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (DEHL) were analyzed. The results indicated that treatment with DESs effectively preserved the aromatic structure of EHL. Compared to untreated EHL, DEHL exhibited an increased O/C atomic ratio, a decreased UV transmittance, a significant reduction in weight-average molecular weight (Mw), and a notable increase in phenolic hydroxyl (ArOH) content. Notably, DEHL treated with ChCl–p-toluenesulfonic acid had the lowest Mw (1586 g/mol) and the highest ArOH content. Except for the ChCl–malic acid and ChCl–acetic acid systems, all the other five DES treatments enhanced the antioxidant activity of DEHL to varying degrees. Among them, DEHL treated with ChCl–p-toluenesulfonic acid exhibited the highest antioxidant activity, with an IC50 DPPH value of 262.87 μg/mL. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lignin-Based Functional Materials)
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