Research Articles

This study aimed to quantify the environmental impacts associated with furniture products’ life cycle, and to explore Life Cycle Assessment’s role in eco-design. The goal was to overcome any misconception of focusing solely on materials innovation in eco-design practice. Three furniture products made up of different materials (paper, plastic, and mixed materials) were assessed using product Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology with Simapro 9.1.1.1 software and the Ecoinvent 3.5 database. The process followed a defined scope and objectives, with inventory analysis, impact assessment, and interpretation of results. The study’s quantitative environmental data revealed that eco-design should extend beyond a focus on material renewability and recyclability, traditionally prioritized by designers. It highlighted the importance of prioritizing furniture product life extension, material reduction, and energy reduction, though with varying degrees of priorities. In addition, the data served as a basis for proposing targeted eco-design improvement strategies. The paper concluded that quantitative product environmental data obtained from the product LCA can provide a clear reference for eco-design, which is of great importance in reducing the adverse environmental impact of products.

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biodegradable polymers produced through microbial fermentation. However, the high costs associated with traditional feedstocks and fermentation techniques limit their economic feasibility. In this study, PHA-producing strains were screened from sludge samples collected at a wastewater treatment plant in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Nile red fluorescence staining and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were used to detect the polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase (phaC) gene fragment, leading to the selection of a high-yield PHA-producing Bacillus strain for further investigation. This strain can utilize various inexpensive substrates and exhibits rapid growth, enabling efficient polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production without the need for sterilization or costly pretreatment processes. When fruit waste was used as the substrate, the PHB content reached 17.94%, and the PHA production yield reached 2.12 g/L. These results demonstrate the feasibility of non-sterilized fermentation using low-cost waste materials, significantly reducing the overall production costs of PHAs and providing a promising strategy for economically efficient PHB production.

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) is an underutilized tuber in Nigerian industries. Its starch has diverse culinary and non-food applications. In this study, locally sourced sweet potato starch was isolated and hydroxypropylated using propylene oxide. The percentage of hydroxypropyl groups added and the degree of substitution were determined. Functional groups and morphological characteristics of both native and modified starches were analyzed using FT-IR and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Functional and pasting properties were also examined. The degree of substitution and hydroxypropyl content fell within acceptable food application limits. SEM showed that granule structure remained intact after surface modification. Hydroxypropylated starches exhibited higher swelling and solubility than native starch from 50 to 90 °C. Both properties increased with greater molar substitution. Hydroxypropylation reduced storage turbidity and syneresis. Peak viscosity increased, while pasting and peak temperatures decreased after modification. Hydroxypropylated starches also had lower setback values. These results indicate enhanced functional properties in modified starch. The modified starch showed industrial potential for use in confectioneries, salad cream, mayonnaise, as well as in roles such as texturizers, thickeners, stabilizers, fillers, flavor carriers, and ingredients in beverages and bakery products, all with energy-efficient processing advantages.

Industrial production efficiency of nanocellulose by mechanical homogenization was directly affected by dispersibility of pulp suspensions. The bamboo pulp was pretreated by oxidation using 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl (TEMPO), enzymatic hydrolysis, and refining to study dispersibility of the pulp suspensions. Physical morphology and surface charges of the pretreated pulp fibers were analyzed to explain the differences of dispersibility. Multiple light scattering results showed that TEMPO oxidized pulp fibers and refined pulp fibers had good dispersivity, while the pulp fibers treated with cellulase hydrolysis exhibited comparatively lower dispersibility. The TEMPO oxidized pulp fibers had high carboxylate contents and high absolute value of Zeta potential. The dispersibility of the fibers could be improved by dispersants, and the maximum dispersion of fibers from enzymatic hydrolysis was obtained with 0.5% carboxymethylcellulose as dispersant.

Water pollution caused by synthetic dyes, like methylene blue, is a threat to the existence of biogenic components of the environment. This study explores the use of raw cow dung (RCD) and treated (acid treatment) cow dung (TCD) as effective sorbents to remove methylene blue (MB) from wastewater. The optimal conditions for MB removal of 58.3% (RCD) and 86.6% (TCD) were determined as 300 mg/L initial dye concentration, 120 min for RCD, and 100 min for TCD contact time, 50 °C temperature, and pH 5.0. Maximum adsorption capacity of 47.8 mg/g and 64.26 mg/g were determined for RCD and TCD, respectively. Thermodynamic parameter of enthalpy change (ΔH° = 9.32 kJ/mol for RCD and 6.40 kJ/mol for TCD) indicated an endothermic process. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) identified functional groups, such as OH, -NH₂, C=O, and C-O, as being responsible for the uptake of the dye molecules. The study confirms that activated cow dung is a sustainable, cost-effective alternative to conventional adsorbents like activated carbon for dye removal.

Mechanical and acoustic properties were studied for hybrid composites developed from Cashew Apple Bagasse (CAB) fibers and Mahogany tree Fruit Filler (MFF) in an epoxy matrix. The effect of alkali treatment (5% and 10% NaOH solutions) on CAB fiber composites at different weight fractions of MFF (0 to 25 wt%) was studied. The composites including 15 to 20 wt% MFF and treated with 5% NaOH offered the highest performance. Tensile, flexural, and impact strengths were improved by 40%, 50%, and 45.7%, respectively, when compared to untreated ones; also, a 56.7% increase in noise reduction coefficient (NRC) was measured. These enhancements can be attributed to the removal of surface impurities on the fiber surface, improving fiber-matrix bonding, and achieving even dispersion of filler in the matrix. Using alkali treatment with NaOH concentration exceeding 10% and with a higher filler content (> 20 wt%) embrittled the fibers, at the same time allowing them to clump together, which decreased both mechanical and acoustic performance. The best approach was to combine CAB and MFF in appropriate quantities into a hybrid composite, striking a good balance between reinforcement and load transfer efficiency. These composites are intended to be used in car interiors, soundproof panels, and lightweight structural parts.

To address the challenge that the perceptual evaluation dimensions of lacquer-wood furniture cultural relics imitations are inherently abstract and challenging to quantify, this study established a systematic perceptual evaluation framework to support the high-quality and large-scale development of lacquer-wood furniture cultural relics imitations. Based on 12 evaluation indicators derived through the Delphi method, six key perceptual evaluation indicators were identified. Using the semantic differential method (SD), evaluators assessed and scored 13 pairs of cultural relic imitation samples. Principal component analysis (PCA) was employed to extract the core evaluation factors. At the same time, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to examine the impact of evaluator group type and sample type on the assessment results. Additionally, the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory model (DEMATEL) was utilized to determine the weight distribution of the core evaluation factors. The findings indicated that the perceptual evaluation system, constructed based on six core evaluation factors, exhibits strong scientific validity and practical applicability. This system is a standardized and objective tool for evaluating and certifying the quality of lacquer-wood furniture cultural relic imitations in museums.

This study investigated the transverse thermal conductivity of low-density plantation wood species and tropical hardwoods from the Philippines using the guarded hot-plate method. Results showed that thermal conductivity of low density, plantation species and denser tropical hardwoods ranged from 0.128 to 0.188 W/mK and 0.161 to 0.300 W/mK, respectively. Thermal conductivity was directly influenced by both density and moisture content of wood. Transverse thermal conductivity increased by 0.73% and 1.79% per percent increase in MC from 0% to 21% MC for low density (<500 kg/m³) and high density (>500 kg/m³) wood, respectively. Linear regression models fitted for thermal conductivity and ovendry density indicated a strong fit. However, there was a poor to moderate relationship between thermal conductivity and MC. The results of the present study may be of interest in the conversion of woody biomass to bioenergy or to building designers looking for natural materials to improve energy performance and efficiency of wood structures where heat transfer and temperature control are a significant economic consideration.

A choline chloride-based deep eutectic solvent (DES) system utilizing oxalic acid and citric acid as hydrogen bond donors was used for lignin extraction from Salix babylonica biomass under controlled thermal conditions (130 °C). In choline chloride-oxalic acid system, lignin yield increased from 17.2% (1 h) to 66.1% (9 h) and was stabilized after 7 h of extraction. The optimal samples (DES-E1 and DES-E7, 130 °C/1 h and 7 h) showed high purity lignin (> 89%) while maintaining structural integrity. Both DES systems achieved recovery rates (63.3% and 53.6%) of natural lignin content after 7 h, respectively. Spectral characterization identified selective breaking of the β-O-4 bond between the syringyl (S) and guaiacyl (G) units, indicating DES-mediated bond modification. Furthermore, it was found that the carbon-rich macromolecular structure showed a gradual increase in C/O ratio with prolonged reaction time. This investigation provided a thermal regulation strategy for sustainable lignin extraction while establishing a new pathway for the utilization of Salix babylonica biomass through DES driven structural customization.

Two kinds of deep eutectic solvents (DES) were synthetized and utilized microwave-assisted technology to rapidly disrupt the recalcitrance of lignocellulosic biomass, thereby further enhancing the yield of lignin and obtaining lignin with high-purity and notable antioxidant properties. The DES system, synthetized with choline chloride/formic acid and choline chloride/tartaric acid in a molar ratio of 1:6, was carried out at 140 °C for efficient lignocellulosic biomass separation. Surprisingly, the application of microwave-assisted DES for extracting lignin from Salix babylonica wood was able to substantially shorten the conventional 12 h extraction process to 30 min while significantly improving the separation efficiency. Especially for the DES system synthetized with choline chloride and formic acid, after pretreatment for 30 min, the lignin yield was 70.8%. The lignin fractions had high purity (>88%) and low molecular weight (M_w 1756 to 2546 g/mol). Infrared spectroscopy and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance revealed that the recovered lignin components retained intact aromatic structures, which showed typical structure of G/S-type. Furthermore, the DES lignin fractions exhibited excellent antioxidant properties compared with butyl hydroxyanisole (BHA), thereby laying a foundation for the value-added utilization of lignin.