Volume 10 Issue 3

The drying kinetics of olive oil mill wastes was analyzed based on experiments carried out by various researchers utilizing different drying systems. A critical review of the literature was done, and mathematical models of drying curves proposed by investigators were evaluated. A comparison between the best mathematical models of fit in the drying curves used in past experiments and a two-term Gaussian model was performed. This model improved all the results of fit in each experiment. Drying rates and drying stages were obtained and discussed. An average drying rate for each experiment from the two-term Gaussian model was calculated. This value allowed for visualizing and comparing the average speed of evaporated water in each experiment for the different dryers. Finally, and after having verified that almost all drying occurs mainly by a diffusion phenomenon, an analysis on the effective moisture diffusivity and activation energy values was performed. The results indicated that there was no dependency of these quantities on independent variables such as the drying air temperature, the drying air velocity, and the sample thickness. It follows that drying of olive oil mill wastes is a very complex physical process that depends heavily on aspects such as pieces of pit, pulp, skin, vegetation water, olive oil content, sugars and organics compounds of different nature.

This manuscript provides a mini review on the fundamentals of cellulose binding domains (CBDs) or cellulose binding modules (CBMs) and their applications using lignocellulosic materials. CBDs, the non-productive part of cellulases, have miscellaneous biological functions and have been widely applied in lignocellulose hydrolysis, protein engineering, structural support, metabolism, energy storage, antibiosis, immunological recognition, targeting, attachment, etc. due to their specific affinity to various substrates of lignocelluloses. Understanding of the properties and mechanisms of CBDs is of vital significance because it provides the basis for fine manipulation of cellulose-CBM interactions and eventually improves the bioconversion performance of lignocelluloses into fuels and desired chemicals. In this short review, the fundamentals of CBD, the definition of CBM family, and the structures of different CBM families are introduced. Then recent findings in the applications of CBDs are discussed relative to the lignocelllulosic utilizations.

Many current and potential uses of cellulosic materials depend critically on the character of their surfaces. This review of the scientific literature considers both well-established and emerging strategies to change the outermost surfaces of cellulosic fibers or films not only in terms of chemical composition, but also in terms of outcomes such as wettability, friction, and adhesion. A key goal of surface modification has been to improve the performance of cellulosic fibers in the manufacture of composites through chemistries such as esterification that are enabled by the high density of hydroxyl groups at typical cellulosic surfaces. A wide variety of grafting methods, some developed recently, can be used with plant-derived fibers. The costs and environmental consequences of such treatments must be carefully weighed against the potential to achieve similar performances by approaches that use more sustainable methods and materials and involve less energy and processing steps. There is potential to change the practical performances of many cellulosic materials by heating, by enzymatic treatments, by use of surface-active agents, or by adsorption of polyelectrolytes. The lignin, hemicelluloses, and extractives naturally present in plant-based materials also can be expected to play critical roles in emerging strategies to modify the surfaces characteristics of cellulosic fibers with a minimum of adverse environmental impacts.

Cork is a natural cellular material of biological origin with a combination of properties that make it suited for worldwide use as a wine sealant and insulation material. Cork has low density, is buoyant, is not very permeable to fluids, has a low thermal coefficient, exhibits elasticity and deformation without fracturing under compression, and has considerable durability. Such characteristics result from the features of its cellular structure, primarily its cell dimensions and topology, and from the chemical composition of the cell wall. The characteristics of the two main chemical components (suberin and lignin, which represent 53% and 26%, respectively, of the cell wall) have been analyzed. The limits of natural variation and their impacts on cork properties are discussed and used to define the material as “cork”.

This review describes use of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in wood and fiber analysis. Analytical techniques and sample preparation methods are used to localize substructures of the cell wall polymers and are discussed in this review. The ultrastructural features of the wood cell walls, the structures formed by microfibrils, and the distribution of cell wall polymers, as revealed by TEM, are covered. Research investigating the distribution of lignin in tension and compression woods using TEM is reviewed. Different kinds of wood biodegrading enzymes localized using TEM are mentioned. Additional features of TEM, i.e., 3D imaging, analytical TEM, and electron diffraction are discussed. Lastly, a comparison between TEM and other imaging techniques used for wood and fiber research are made. Thus, this review provides insight into the contribution of TEM in wood research since its invention and demonstrates how to use it more effectively in the future.

In the last two decades, laccases have received much attention from researchers because of their specific ability to oxidize lignin. This function of laccase is very useful for applications in several biotechnological processes, including delignification in the pulp and paper industry and the detoxification of industrial effluents from the textile and petrochemical industries. This review focuses on laccase-mediated fiberboard synthesis. Growing concerns regarding the emission of formaldehyde from wood composites has prompted industrialists to consider the fabrication of green composites. Laccase-mediated fiber treatments oxidize the lignin component without affecting the cellulose structure. As a result, free radicals are generated on the fiber surface, and these can act as potential reactive sites for further cross-linking reactions in board manufacturing. Binderless fiberboards prepared using such methods can be considered as green composites because the manufacturing process involves no additional resin.

Because of the impending energy crisis and the environmental problems caused by the excessive use of fossil fuels, biofuels produced from renewable energy biomass have been playing a more significant role in the world. This follows from their obvious environmental and economic advantages. Bioethanol, the most widely used transportation biofuel, is typically derived from plant-based feedstock sources such wheat, sugar beet, corn, straw, and wood. However, the main problem with bioethanol production is that despite the range of feedstock, raw material availability varies considerably from season to season, as there is no systematic framework. By combining technological paradigm theory with literature mining, we found that bioethanol feedstock production development has followed a three-stage trajectory, which is in accordance with the traditional technological paradigm – the S-curve. This new curve can be divided into BFDP (bioethanol feedstock development paradigm) competition, BFDP diffusion, and BFDP shift. Each phase has a different generation of feedstock; first-generation bioethanol in BFDP competition, second-generation bioethanol in BFDP diffusion, and third-generation bioethanol in BFDP shift. Further, based on the technological support, literature mining, and a realistic background, the second-generation bioethanol (mainly lignocellulosic biomass) is expected to continue to be a significant future trend in the world. The new BFDP framework presented in this paper may provide scholars with research ideas for the future.