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The pineapple leaves (PL) left over in the fields after pineapple harvest or burnt out, generate waste which contributes to the release of greenhouse gases. As pineapple is one of the most harvested crops in the world, the quantity of pineapple trash and its disposal methods are challenging. The composition of PL waste makes it unique to encounter the increasing demand for renewable energy and other useful products. This review is focused on the production of different biorefinery products and miscellaneous products from PL waste. The high cellulose content in PL makes it a potential feedstock for the production of different biorefinery products like bioethanol, oligosaccharides, nitrocellulose, and humic acid apart from this, waste is also useful for the production of different products like pineapple leaf fibres, fake eyelashes, organic leather, pulp and paper. Although the opportunities, future perspectives, and challenges concerning PL waste utilization to value-added goods were also addressed. It has been demonstrated that pineapple waste conversions lower waste creation, and the products produced by the conversion would promote the 'waste-to-wealth' notion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The objective of the presented research was to determine the influence of cellulose coating, obtained from the cellulose solution in N-Methylmorpholine N-oxide (NMMO), on the structural and mechanical properties of paper. The effect of heating time of paper samples coated with cellulose dissolved in NMMO was also investigated. Depending on the heating time of the coating, a continuous or porous layer was obtained. Coating without any heating stage yielded a continuous cellulose layer of hydrophobic properties (higher contact angle in comparison to base paper), and paper of higher smoothness and increased tear resistance. Analysis of the paper samples showed that cellulose coating not only changed the surface properties of paper, but also significantly improved paper strength properties, such as the tensile index, elongation, bursting strength index and double folds number. Despite the process’ limitations (e.g. necessity of removing the NMMO), this method can be considered as a novel approach for paper property modification.Graphical Abstract: [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The pulp and paper industry is placed in a unique position as biomass used as feedstock is now in increasingly high demand from the energy sector. Increased demand for biomass increases pressure on the availability of this resource, which might strengthen the need for recycling of paper. In this study, we calculate the energy use and carbon dioxide emissions for paper production from three pulp types. Increased recycling enables an increase in biomass availability and reduces life-cycle energy use and carbon dioxide emissions. Recovered paper as feedstock leads to lowest energy use (22GJ/t) and CO2 emissions (−1100kgCO2/t) when biomass not used for paper production is assumed to be converted into bio-energy. Large differences exist between paper grades in e.g. electricity and heat use during production, fibre furnish, filler content and recyclability. We found large variation in energy use over the life-cycle of different grades. However, in all paper grades, life-cycle energy use decreases with increased recycling rates and increased use of recovered fibres. The average life-cycle energy use of the paper mix produced in The Netherlands, where the recycling rate is approximately 75%, is about 14GJ/t. This equals CO2 savings of about 1tCO2/t paper if no recycled fibres would be used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted to determine the characteristics and biogas production potential of organic materials separated from municipal solid wastes using a rotary drum reactor (RDR) process. Four different types of wastes were first pretreated with a commercial RDR system at different retention times (1, 2 and 3 d) and the organic fractions were tested with batch anaerobic digesters with 2.6gVSL−1 initial loading. The four types of waste were: municipal solid waste (MSW), a mixture of MSW and paper waste, a mixture of MSW and biosolids, and a mixture of paper and biosolids. After 20 d of thermophilic digestion (50±1°C), it was found that the biogas yields of the above materials were in the range of 457–557mLgVS−1 and the biogas contained 57.3–60.6% methane. The total solid and volatile solid reductions ranged from 50.2% to 65.0% and 51.8% to 66.8%, respectively. For each material, the change of retention time in the RDR from 1 to 3d did not show significant (α =0.05) influence on the biogas yields of the recovered organic materials. Further studies are needed to determine the minimum retention time requirements in the RDR system to achieve effective separation of organic from inorganic materials and produce suitable feedstock for anaerobic digesters. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Invasive alien plant species (IAPS) are one of the biggest challenges in European ecosystems, displacing local vegetation, destroying agricultural land, and causing billions of dollars of damage to the European economy every year. Many of them are removed daily and mainly burned. In this work, we investigated the possibilities of using plants as feedstock for paper production. Papers made from three invasive alien plants, i.e., Knotweed, Goldenrod, and Black locust, were studied and compared with commercial office paper. The study included testing of: (1) structural properties—basic physical properties, grammage, thickness, density and specific volume, moisture content, and ash content; (2) physical and dynamic mechanical properties—tensile strength, Clark stiffness, viscoelastic properties; (3) colorimetric properties of prints; (4) effect of UV light on ageing; and (5) study of cellulose fiber structure and morphology by microscopy. The results suggested that the paper produced can be used as commercial office paper, considering that the paper is slightly dyed. Such papers can also be used for special purposes that present a natural style and connection to nature. The papers produced can also be used for printing documents that are meant to be kept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]