Volume 18 Issue 1

This editorial considers the use of images as a way to enhance the readability and possibly the impact of scientific writing. Readers are asked to envision effective scientific writing as a form of storytelling. Some stories can be enhanced by adding a diagram or a step-by-step procedure. Inherently dull results might be enlivened (in a cautious manner) with a non-typical graphical portrayal. A potentially tedious theoretical point might be lightened with a touch of humor, which might seem out of place if it were expressed in text. Keep these options in mind as you are creating your next story, i.e., your next research article.

The development of nanocellulose sustainable materials is considered as one of the most promising alternatives to address plastic pollution issues, as global plastic wastes may increase to 11 billion tonnes by 2025. However, how to achieve the homogeneous dispersion of nanocelluloses (CNCs) and strong interfacial interactions with matrix materials, while well maintaining its percolation networks, is a challenge in this field. As opposed to the conventional surface chemical modification strategy, the reducing end modification of CNCs as a novel approach provides an opportunity to achieve this objective, which also opens a new door for the design of stimuli-responsive CNC sustainable composites, such as vitrimer materials and stimuli-responsive Pickering emulsions.

Streptomyces species have been exploited widely as microbial cell factories, especially for antibiotic production. However, their potential for alpha-amylase production has not been extensively studied. This study reports the isolation, molecular identification, and optimization of the physiological conditions for alpha-amylase production from Streptomyces sp., isolated from soil in Kotli Azad Kashmir. The maximum growth of Streptomyces MI-1 was observed at a neutral pH and a temperature of 35 °C. An amylase activity of 1.15 IU/mL was observed when 4% starch was added to the nutrient medium. During the submerged state fermentation, the maximum amylase activity of 2.136 IU/mL/min was observed after 144 h of incubation. The characterization of bacterial amylase revealed an optimum temperature of 40 °C, and its optimum pH was 7.0. Furthermore, during the study, examining the effect of different metal ions found that Mg2+ and Ca2+ ions had a positive effect, while Cu2+ and Fe2+ ions had an inhibitory effect compared to the control. This preliminary study provides basal line information for the discovery of novel microbes from the unexplored natural resources for amylase production, which will be used for many purposes.

Potent antioxidant activities of solvent extracts (96% aqueous ethanol) from the fruit, leaf, and branchlet without adherent leaf of Cupressus arizonica were evaluated using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay and compared with butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and ascorbic acid (AA). Their chemical compositions were analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Branchlet extracts (BE) were the most active as an antioxidant agent at 93.3% at the concentration of 0.493 mg/mL, which was higher than the value of vitamin C (63.3%) at the same concentration. The major components identified in the BE were communic acid (43.7%), followed by agatholic acid (20%), and ferruginol (10.4%). The extract from fruit had good antioxidant activity (90.3%) at a concentration of 0.015 mg/mL. The major compounds identified in the fruit extracts (FE) were communic acid (46.8%), spirohexane-5-carboxylic acid, 1,1,2,2-tetramethyl-, methyl ester (27.4%), and ferruginol (6%). Leaf extracts (LE) were more active as an antioxidant agent at 80.3%, which was higher than the value of BHT (75.7%) at the concentration of 0.015 mg/mL. The major components identified in the LE were hexadecanoic acid (45.1%), 1H,5H-pyrrolo[1′,2′:3,4]imidazo[1,5-a]pyridine, octahydro- (9%), bicyclo [3.1.0]hex-3-en-2-one, 4-methyl-1-(1-methylethyl)- (8.1%).

The objective of this research was to prepare an optimized bio-composite for packaging based on alkali-treated banana pseudo-stem fiber (BPSF), PBAT, and PLA using response surface methodology (RSM). The effects of three factors, i.e., alkali-treated BPSF (0.8 to 2.4 g), PBAT (0.75 to 2.25 g), and PLA (1.6 to 3.2 g) on two dependent variables, i.e., bending strength and tensile strength of bio-composite, were investigated. Box-Behnken design (BBD) provided the combination for an optimum composite, which was 1.15 g of alkali-treated BPSF, 2.09 g of PBAT, and 2.66 g of PLA, respectively. The bending strength and tensile strength for alkali-treated BPSF/PBAT/PLA composite were 32.62 MPa and 30.91 MPa, which was 20.50% and 16.51% higher than native BPSF/PBAT/PLA composite. The bio-composite prepared using the optimized results was further characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), mechanical testing, contact angles, and water absorption tests. Analyses showed that alkali-treatment could improve the adhesion and compatibility of BPSF in the polymer matrix. These outcomes were associated with the use of treated-BPSF for better mechanical strength and lower hygroscopicity. This result demonstrated that alkali-treated agricultural residue and degradable polymer could be used to prepare composite materials for green packaging application.

Cyperus esculentus tubers are rich in starch, oil, protein, dietary fiber, and other nutrients. Ultrasonic treatment can reduce the combination of starch, protein, and dietary fiber in C. esculentus tubers during extraction of C. esculentus starch, thereby improving the extraction yield and shortening of the extraction time. In this study, the extraction yield of C. esculentus starch was 92.2% using ultrasound-assisted alkali method. The microstructure analysis showed that the granule characteristics of C. esculentus starch and other starches were similar. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that C. esculentus starch possessed an A-type crystal structure. The onset temperature of gelatinization endotherm and peak temperature of gelatinization of C. esculentus starch were only lower than those of sweet potato starch, and higher than other starches, which is 67.9 °C. The content of resistance starch (RS) (11.0%) in C. esculentus starch was the highest among the six starches. As an underutilized resource, C. esculentus is a new crop with high quality, high yield, and high comprehensive utilization value. Its aerial parts can be used as feed, green manure, and its underground parts can be edible and oily. C. esculentus starch can be a valuable source to develop into new functional food.

Bamboo filament decorated board is a new kind of bamboo and wood composite material. In this material, melamine-urea-formaldehyde (MUF) modified resin impregnated paper is used as the bonding material between bamboo filament decoration material and finger joint plate. This research investigated the effects of hot pressing temperature, time, and pressure on surface bonding properties of bamboo filament decorated board, and the optimum process parameters were determined. With the surface bonding strength as the evaluation index, the response surface analysis was used to optimize the design of the optimal hot pressing process. The optimum surface bonding strength of 1.13 MPa was achieved with the process parameters of 130 s (hot pressing time), 148 °C (hot pressing temperature), and 2.00 MPa (hot pressing pressure). The experimental values were in good agreement with the predicted ones, and the relative error was less than 5%, showing the optimized result.

Nitrogen self-doped hierarchical porous carbon for electrical double-layer capacitors was synthesized by direct carbonization of bean dregs-based tar with potassium acetate as the template agent. The pore structure parameters and chemical element composition were adjusted by varying the heating rate during the carbonization process. The electrochemical properties of the electrode materials were evaluated in a three electrode system with 6 M KOH as the electrolyte. The resultant bean dregs-based porous carbons (BDPCs) exhibited high specific surface area, unique hierarchical architecture (consisting of supermicro- and mesopores), and medium nitrogen content (0.66 to 0.78%). The BDPC-10 sample had the highest specific surface area of 1610 m2/g and reasonable pore size distribution, and consequently exhibited an excellent specific capacitance of 363.7 F/g at the current density of 1 A/g. Nevertheless, the capacitance was reduced to 280.5 F/g at 3 A/g, giving a capacitance retention ratio of 77.1%. This study suggests a facile and environmentally friendly template synthesis process for supercapacitor electrode materials preparation, but it also faces challenges to increase the rate capability.

As a renewable biomaterial, bamboo has been widely used in construction and indoor decoration. While the application of bamboo is limited by its low decay resistance and flame retardancy, the combination of modification with boric acid and borax has been found to be effective for improving bamboo flame retardant. In this study, the decay resistance, mechanical properties, and physical properties of bamboo, both before and after treated being with boric acid and borax (in a 1 to 2 ratio), were analyzed to better utilize the modification solution for bamboo. The results showed that in comparison to the untreated bamboo, the treated bamboo had a strong decay resistance, i.e., greater than 80% resistance effectiveness improvement. In addition, the decay resistance and compression strength of the samples showed a considerable increase, i.e., 21%, after the modification. However, the physical properties e.g., the weight gain, equilibrium moisture content, and dimensional stability and bending properties of the bamboo were less affected by the modification method, which could be improved via the combination with another chemical modification agent.

The effect of replacing the conventional coarse aggregate with wood shavings was evaluated relative to the 28-day compressive strength of the concrete. Six groups were studied: group-1 represented the normal concrete (NC-CTRL1), group-2 (TW-CTRL2) comprised the specimens that had the replacement of the coarse aggregate with raw wood shavings, group-3, group-4, group-5, and group 6 represented the specimens that had the coarse aggregate as coated (treated) wood shavings with cement paste (group-3 and -4) and with tile adhesive paste (group-5 and -6), with and without the effect of the emulsifier, respectively. The density of the TW-CTRL2 concrete was 31.4% lighter than NC-CTRL1. However, the compressive strength of TW-CTRL2 was 75% of the NC-CTRL1, but within the acceptable limits stated in ASTM standards. The findings of this study showed a potential to use the produced concrete as concrete masonry unit when compared with the values reported in previous studies. Compared with TW-CTRL2, the compressive strength increased 45% and 20% for the coated wood shavings with cement and tile adhesive pastes, respectively. The effect of using the emulsifier in the coating process of the wood shavings increased the compressive strength by 20%, and reduced the voids of the concrete by 3%.