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Crustacean shells, waste from the seafood industry, have been identified as a potential sustainable material for the adsorption of lead, a potent heavy metal found in the discharge of industrial processes. The dynamics and kinetics of its performance were evaluated in batch experiments under pH, temperature, time, and initial concentration. A unique and non-intuitive key finding was that among the native components of the crab shell matrix, i.e., chitin, protein, and calcium carbonate, calcium carbonate was instrumental in sequestration. The role of protein was minimal, whereas the efficiency of chitin in lead complexation was linked to the lead atomic radius, which, of the crab shell components, we determined was very prone to interacting with chitin.

Lithium bromide molten salt hydrate (∼62 wt% aqueous solution of LiBr) can dissolve cellulose, but the cellulose dissolution mechanisms are not fully understood. This study revisited cellulose dissolution in the LiBr solution and aimed to provide new insights into the dissolution mechanisms. The collected evidence suggested that cellulose dissolution in the LiBr solution is primarily attributed to the disruption of intermolecular H-bonds of cellulose by the ion-dipole coordination between hydrated Li+ and cellulose hydroxy. The coordination between Li+ and cellulose was verified by 7Li NMR and simultaneous DSC-TGA analysis. The observations in this study also suggest that polarizable, large-size, and low-electronegativity Br– plays a synergetic and supplementary role in the dissolution of cellulose. In addition, the dissolution of cellulose in the LiBr solution is greatly dependent on dissolution conditions (LiBr concentration, temperature, pH, and cellulose loading) and cellulose properties (particle size and degree of polymerization).

Marine microbial secondary metabolites with diversified structures have been found as promising sources of anti-inflammatory lead compounds. This review summarizes the sources, chemical structures, and pharmacological properties of anti-inflammatory natural products reported from marine microorganisms in the past three years (2021–2023). Approximately 252 anti-inflammatory compounds, including 129 new ones, were predominantly obtained from marine fungi and they are structurally divided into polyketides (51.2%), terpenoids (21.0%), alkaloids (18.7%), amides or peptides (4.8%), and steroids (4.3%). This review will shed light on the development of marine microbial secondary metabolites as potential anti-inflammatory lead compounds with promising clinical applications in human health.

Herein, wheat straw residue and pulping waste liquid were collected from pulping mill and mixed to prepare bio-based granular fuels by using compression molding technology, and to explore the comprehensive utilization of the industrial waste of pulping and papermaking. The effects of pulping waste liquid on granular fuel properties were analyzed systemically. Further study of the function of pulping waste liquid, cellulose and hemicellulose was used to replace wheat straw residue and avoid the interference factors. Therefore, the prediction models of granular fuels were established with influencing factors that included cellulose, hemicellulose and pulping waste liquid. The granular fuels had the best performance with 18.30% solid content of pulping waste liquid. The highest transverse compressive strength of granular fuel was 102.61 MPa, and the activation energy was 81.71 KJ·mol−1. A series of curve fitting prediction models were established to clarify the forming process of granular fuel, and it turned out that the pulping waste liquid could improve the adhesion between solid particles and increase their compression resistance.

- An effective energy conversion tool is solid oxide fuel cell that converts chemical energy to heat and electricity by oxidant reactions and electrochemical fuel. Efficient modeling of this device can decrease the analyzing and design costs a lot. Thus, a new blackbox-based identification system is designed and defined for the solid oxide fuel cells herein. The presented method is a modified Ridgelet neural network. The method has been modified by a new enhanced design of the Fish Migration Optimizer. The new designed model, Enhanced Fish Migration Optimizer-Rigdelet neural network, is then performed on some data to train and validate. The model is finally put in comparison with several latest models to authenticate the model. Final results show that the proposed method with 1.78 MSE for 2/12/1 network topology provides the best accuracy to the others. The model is also confirmed by experimental data and the final achievements indicate that the suggested technique gives satisfying results for model identification of the solid oxide fuel cells.

The grid-forming virtual synchronous generator (GFVSG) with large virtual inertia can provide a friendly grid-connected operational mode for power electronic converters, but it may also introduce the active power dynamic oscillation problems similar to traditional synchronous generators. In view of this, the dynamic equivalent circuit model of the GFVSG grid-tied active power-angle is established firstly, and, then, the understanding of the GFVSG active power oscillations under variable disturbances is revealed from the perspective of circuit energy flow in this paper. On this basis, an active power dynamic oscillation damping method based on an energy reshaping mechanism for the GFVSG is proposed, and a parameter design method using the second-order equivalent reduced-order control model is given. The MATLAB 2016a simulation as well as experimental test platforms of a 100 kV·A GFVSG grid-connected system are established, then, both the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed active power dynamic oscillation damping method are verified by using the simulation and experimental comparison results.

Abstract Background Bacterial infection in wounds has become a major threat to human life and health. With the growth use of synthetic antibiotics and the elevated evolution of drug resistant bacteria in human body cells requires the development of novel wound curing strategies. Herein, a novel pH-responsive hydrogel (RPC/PB) was fabricated using poly(vinyl alcohol)-borax (PB) and natural antibiotic resveratrol grafted cellulose nanofibrils (RPC) for bacterial-infected wound management. Results In this hydrogel matrix, RPC conjugate was interpenetrated in the PB network to form a semi-interpenetrating network that exhibited robust mechanical properties (fracture strength of 149.6 kPa), high self-healing efficiency (> 90%), and excellent adhesion performance (tissue shear stress of 54.2 kPa). Interestingly, the induced RPC/PB hydrogel showed pH-responsive drug release behavior, the cumulative release amount of resveratrol in pH 5.4 was 2.33 times than that of pH 7.4, which was adapted well to the acidic wound microenvironment. Additionally, this RPC/PB hydrogel exhibited excellent biocompatibility and antioxidant effect. Moreover, in vitro and in vivo results revealed that such RPC/PB hydrogel had excellent antibacterial, skin tissue regeneration and wound closure capabilities. Conclusion Therefore, the generated RPC/PB hydrogel could be an excellent wound dressing for bacteria-infected wound healing.

Abstract In this work, an “upright” cellulose layered template, which can be precisely controlled by the fiber orientation and thickness of anisotropic cellulose film, was first developed to prepare vertically aligned Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO) ceramic membrane with low tortuosity and uniform porosity. The flexible composite solid‐state electrolytes (CSEs) were synthesized by incorporating poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) polymer into LLZO architecture, and exhibited distinguished mechanical strength, elevated ionic conductivity (2.1 × 10−4 S cm−1) and excellent interface compatibility with lithium anodes. The assembled LiFePO4/lithium full cells assembled with as‐obtained CSEs can reach large discharge capacities of 172.3 mAh g−1 with coulombic efficiencies of above 99% and capacity retention of 93.1% even after 200 cycles. These results clearly demonstrate that the sophisticated design of vertical aligned cellulose layered template with fine‐scale size and exquisite architecture is a promising and practical approach in fabricating flexible LLZO@PEO‐LiTFSI CSEs with high‐safety and high‐performance.

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are promising for lignin dissolution and extraction. However, they usually possess high polarity and are difficult to recycle. To overcome this drawback, a variety of switchable ionic liquids (SILs) composed of 1,8-diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec-7-ene (DBU) and alcohols was synthesized and screened. According to the thermodynamic modeling suggestions, the selected DBU–HexOH SIL was coupled with hydrogen-bond donors to form switchable-DES (SDES) systems with moderated viscosity, conductivity, and pH while maintaining switchability. The SDESs produced a well-improved lignin and lignin model compound solubility compared with those of SILs; charging CO2 into SDES (SDESCO2) caused a further increase in solubility. The solubility (25 °C) of syringic acid, ferulic acid, and milled wood lignin in SDESCO2 reached 230.57, 452.17, and 279.12 mg/g, respectively. Such SDES-dissolved lignin can be regenerated using acetone as an anti-solvent. The SDES-regenerated lignin exhibited a well-preserved structure with no noticeable chemical modifications. Furthermore, the SDESCO2 lignin possessed a higher molecular weight (Mw = 10,340 g/mol; Mn = 7672 g/mol), improved uniformity (polydispersity index = 1.35), and a higher guaiacyl lignin unit content compared with the original milled wood lignin. The SDES system proposed in the present work could benefit the fractionation of lignin compounds and facilitate downstream industrial processes.

Grasses are potential candidate to replace wood as a raw material for pulping and paper making, and several processes have been developed to produce grass pulp. In this study, wheat straw was used as raw material, and the possibility of sequential treatment with a mechanical method and deep eutectic solvent (DES) to prepare high-quality dissolving pulp was explored. Firstly, the wheat straw was mechanically treated, and then the wheat straw was delignified using a choline chloride–lactic acid deep eutectic solvent. The results showed that the optimal treatment conditions of deep eutectic solvent were 110 °C, 6 h, and a solid–liquid ratio (ratio of pulp to DES) of 1:40. The removal rate of lignin was 82.92%, the glucose content of pulp was increased by 11.42%. The DES recovery rate was further calculated, and the results showed that the DES recovery rate was more than 50% with rotary evaporation. The pulp viscosity after bleaching was 472 mL/g, and the α-cellulose accounted for 81.79%. This treatment has advantages in biomass refining, and the total utilization rate of wheat straw reaches 72%. This study confirmed that combined mechanical and deep eutectic solvent treatment can effectively remove lignin from wheat straw to produce high-quality wheat straw dissolving pulp.

Myocardin is known as an important transcriptional regulator in smooth and cardiac muscle development as well as a tumor suppressor. However, the pathological function of myocardin in NSCLC metastasis is poorly understood. Here, we have described novel roles for myocardin in the metastatic cascade using in vitro and in vivo models. We demonstrate that myocardin deficiency is sufficient to trigger epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) process but reduces metastatic potential of NSCLC in vivo. Myocardin deficiency reduces lung cancer metastasis because of persistent EMT and decreasing colonization capacity. Restoring myocardin expression in colonization stage promotes the metastasis of lung cancer cells. An epigenetically negative feedback loop formed by myocardin and PRMT5/MEP50 complex prevents EMT. We also uncover the unknown mechanism of myocardin suppression in lung cancer tissues that PRMT5/MEP50 complex negatively regulates myocardin expression. It helps to reconcile conflicting results that have challenged the significance of EMT and cancer metastasis and explain the phenotype of myocardin suppression in lung cancer cells.

A template-free and one-step carbonization process was developed for fabricating graphitic porous carbon spheres (GPCSs) on hemicelluloses as the electrode material for supercapacitors. This method is green, low-energy, and less time consuming compared to the conventional two-step process (pore-forming and graphitizing). It uses K2FeO4, a mild activating agent that fulfills synchronous activation and graphitization. The GPCSs is regular spherical shape, have high nanoporosity, a large specific surface area (1,250 m2 g−1), and have a high graphitization degree. A unique structural advantage includes a rich interconnected conductive network for electron transfer that shortens the ion transport distance of the electrolyte. Remarkably, the GPCSs electrode displays outstanding electrochemical performance including high specific capacitance (262 F g−1 at 1.0 A g−1), rate capability energy (80%, 20 A g−1), and excellent cycling stability (95%, 10,000 cycles). This work represents a powerful methodology to develop sustainable and low-cost energy storage devices from hemicellulose.

Abstract Background There is a noticeable lack of systematic researches on evaluating the correlation between serum estrogen levels and changes in brain functional areas of perimenopausal women.The aim of this study is to investigate the regional spontaneous brain activity changes in perimenopausal women. Methods Based on the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging datasets acquired from 25 perimenopausal women and 20 healthy women of reproductive age, a two-sample t-test was performed on individual normalized regional homogeneity (ReHo) maps. Relationships between abnormal ReHo values and the self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), the self-rating depression scale (SDS) were investigated with Pearson correlation analysis. We also investigated the correlation between abnormal ReHo values and serum estrogen level. Results In the perimenopausal group, we found increased ReHo in the right posterior cerebellum (region 2), left middle frontal gyrus and left middle cingulate gyrus ( $$P

Abstract Aims To make the evaluation more scientific, structured and systematic, this study aims to develop an evaluation index system for nurses training and to explore clinical effect of system. Design The evaluation index system of nurses’ post‐training was constructed using the Delphi method. Methods Introducing the system, we used the pre‐work training of new nurses as an example for discussing the specific implementation scheme of the system. Twenty‐five tertiary and first‐class general hospitals in 14 provinces and municipalities were evaluated on the spot, and the application effect of the system was evaluated comprehensively. Results The index system consisted of three first‐grade indexes, seven second‐grade indexes and 23 third‐grade indexes. There were three levels in teaching and training ability, and the distance had statistical significance.

The segmentation of cervical cell in liquid-based smear image plays an important role in cervical cancer detection. Despite of research for many years, it is still a challenge for the complexity of cell images such as poor contrast, cell irregularity, and overlapping. To solve this problem, a novel method is proposed based on Cell-GAN - a generative adversarial network. Firstly, the Cell-GAN is trained to learn a probability distribution of cell morphology by comparing the difference between the generated single-cell images and annotated single-cell images. Thus, the Cell-GAN has the ability to judge the integrity of a cell and treat other cellular information of a cell image, except for overlapping parts, as the background. Then, a complete single-cell image is generated by the trained Cell-GAN for each cell, which is located by a guide factor. The guide factor is constructed by a part of the cell to be segmented, such as the nucleus, to help Cell-GAN locate the cell and avoid generating a multi-cell image in the presence of overlapping, which means the contours of cells still cannot be distinguished. Finally, the segmentation line is defined by the contour of the generated cell, and the input image is cropped using the cell size information. The cropped image is reused for image generation until the area of generated cell varies within a small range.The proposed method is evaluated on the segmentation of single-cell images and overlapping cell images and obtained significant values of 94.3% DC, 7.9% FNRo for single-cell images and 89.9% DC, 6.4% FNRo for overlapping cell images respectively. The experimental results indicate that the proposed method can adaptively approach the boundary lines of cells to handle with different cases of overlapping in cervical cell images through what learned by the Cell-GAN. The proposed method outperforms most current methods in both segmentation accuracy and robustness.

The preparation of adsorbents with eco-friendly and high-efficiency characteristics is an important approach for pollutant removal, and can relieve the pressure of water shortage and environmental pollution. In recent studies, much attention has been paid to the potential of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) from biomass, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, and agricultural waste for the preparation of adsorbents. Hereby, this paper summarizes the state of research on carbon adsorbents developed from various sources with HTC. The reaction mechanism of HTC, the different products, the modification of hydrochar to obtain activated carbon, and the treatment of heavy metal pollution and organic dyes from wastewater are reviewed. The maximum adsorption capacity of carbon from different biomass sources was also evaluated.

Nutritional microenvironment determines the specification of progenitor cells, and lipid availability was found to modulate osteogenesis in skeletal progenitors. Here, we investigated the implications of lipid scarcity in the osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (BMSCs) and the role of low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 5 (LRP5), a co-receptor transducing canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signals, in BMSC lipid uptake during osteogenesis. The osteogenic differentiation of murine BMSCs was suppressed by lipid scarcity and partially rescued by additional fatty acid treatment with oleate. The enhancement of osteogenesis by oleate was found to be dosage-dependent, along with the enhanced activation of beta-catenin and Wnt target genes. Conditional knockout (CKO) of Lrp5 gene in murine mesenchymal lineage using Lrp5fl/fl;Prrx1-cre mice led to decreased bone quality and altered fat distribution in vivo. After Lrp5 ablation using adenoviral Cre-recombinase, the accumulation of lipid droplets in BMSC cytoplasm was significantly reduced, and the osteogenesis of BMSCs was suppressed. Moreover, the impaired osteogenesis due to either lipid scarcity or Lrp5 ablation could be rescued by recombinant Wnt3a protein, indicating that the osteogenesis induced by Wnt/beta-catenin signaling was independent of LRP5-mediated lipid uptake. In conclusion, lipid scarcity suppresses BMSC osteogenic differentiation. LRP5 plays a role in the uptake of lipids in BMSCs and therefore mediates osteogenic specification.

Hydrogels have attracted much attraction for promising flexible electronics due to the versatile tunability of the properties. However, there is still a big obstacle to balance between the multi-properties and performance of wearable electronics. Herein, we propose a salt-percolated nanocellulose composite hydrogel which was fabricated via radical polymerization with acrylic acid as polymer networks (NaCl-CNCs-PAA). CNCs were utilized as a reinforcing agent to enhance the mechanical properties of the hydrogel. Moreover, the abundant hydroxyl groups endow the hydrogel with noncovalent interactions, such as hydrogen bonding, and the robustness of the hydrogel was thus improved. NaCl incorporation induced the electrostatic interaction between CNCs and PAA polymer blocks, thus facilitating the improvement of the stretchability of the hydrogel. The as-obtained hydrogel exhibited excellent stretchability, ionic conductivity, mechanical robustness and anti-freezing properties, making it suitable for self-powered sensing applications. A single-mode triboelectric nanogenerator (C-TENG) was fabricated by utilizing the composite hydrogel as electrodes. This C-TENG could effectively convert biomechanical energy to electricity (89.2 V, 1.8 µA, 32.1 nC, and the max power density of 60.8 mW m−2 at 1.5 Hz.) Moreover, the composite hydrogel was applied for strain sensing to detect human motions. The nanocellulose composite hydrogel can achieve the application as a power supply in integrated sensing systems and as a strain sensor for human motion detection.

The application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in antibacterial materials, glucose detection, etc., is of broad interest for researchers around the world. Nanocellulose with many excellent properties can be used as a carrier and stabilizer to assist in the synthesis of AgNPs. In this study, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were used to assist in the synthesis of AgNPs under the reduction of glucose and detection of glucose concentration under different conditions. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis showed that the AgNPs in the nanocellulose-AgNPs (NC-AgNPs) system were roughly spherical and randomly distributed on the nanocellulose. In the whole reaction system, when the concentration of nanocellulose is 0.11 mg/mL, the concentration of silver ammonia solution is 0.6 mM, and the mixing time is 2.5 h, according to the UV-Vis analysis, the absorbance of CNF-AgNPs at 425 nm exhibited a good linear relationship (R2 = 0.9945) with the glucose concentration range (5–50 μM), while the absorbance of CNC-AgNPs at 420 nm showed a good linear relationship (R2 = 0.9956) with the glucose concentration range (5–35 μM). The synthesis of NC-AgNPs can be further developed into a sensor with higher sensitivity and higher stability for detecting glucose concentration and a material with antibacterial effects.

Based on the reduction of environmental pollution, a biological enzyme assisted alkali-oxygen pulping method was explored to improve the delignification efficiency and fiber accessibility of wheat straw and improve the properties of wheat straw pulp. In this paper, lipase and xylanase were used to pretreat wheat straw and the effects of different enzyme types and enzyme dosage on the microstructure and pulp properties of wheat straw were investigated and experimented. The results showed that the lipase can remove fat and wax on the surface of wheat straw, while xylanase degraded the hemicellulose components, such as xylan, of wheat straw fiber, destroyed the structure of the lignin-carbohydrate complex, increasing lignin removal as a result and enhancing the impregnating, diffusion and penetration of alkali. Compared with wheat straw without enzyme pretreatment, the skeleton of wheat straw pretreated by enzyme became looser, the internal cavity appeared and the wall cavity became thin and transparent. The fines decreased obviously and the length of fibers increased. After combined pretreatment with lipase (15 U·g−1) and xylanase (15 U·g−1), the pulping performance of wheat straw was improved and the tensile index (97.37 N·m·g−1), brightness (40.9% ISO) and yield (58.10%) of the pulp increased by 12.9%, 19.9% and 9.9%, respectively. It can be seen that enzyme pretreatment is a green and effective approach to improving the alkali-oxygen pulping performance of wheat straw.

Every year, over 8 million tons of crustacean shells are discarded. However, there exists an opportunity for valorizing the chitin and calcium carbonate part of the composition of the shells. Our study revealed crustacean chitin reduces self-aggregation effects. It was shown that crustacean-based nanofibers alone or added to cellulose offer unprecedented reductions in viscosity even after drying to produce foams impossible for cellulose. Polysaccharide nanofibers suffer from increased viscosity from strong hydrogen bonding addressed by the incorporation of crustacean-based nanofibers. The ability of the nanocomposite to overcome self-aggregation and collapse was attributed to organized chitin nanofiber morphology in the crustacean matrix. As a result of enhanced surface area from reduced fiber aggregation, the chitin/crustacean-cellulose blend was tested for a biomedical application requiring a high surface area: coagulation. Preliminary experiments showed the crustacean matrices, especially those containing calcium carbonate, induced blood clotting when 35 s. A materials platform is proposed for bio-based nanofiber production overcoming intractable and difficult-to-address self-aggregation effects associated with polysaccharides.

With the increasing demand for dissolving pulp, large quantities of hemicelluloses were generated and abandoned. These hemicelluloses are very promising biomass resources for preparing carbon spheres. However, the pore structures of the carbon spheres obtained from biomass are usually poor, which extensively limits their utilization. Herein, the carbon microspheres derived from hemicelluloses were prepared using hydrothermal carbonization and further activated with different activators (KOH, K2CO3, Na2CO3, and ZnCl2) to improve their electrochemical performance as supercapacitors. After activation, the specific surface areas of these carbon spheres were improved significantly, which were in the order of ZnCl2 > K2CO3 > KOH > Na2CO3. The carbon spheres with high surface area of 2025 m2/g and remarkable pore volume of 1.07 cm3/g were achieved, as the carbon spheres were activated by ZnCl2. The supercapacitor electrode fabricated from the ZnCl2-activated carbon spheres demonstrated high specific capacitance of 218 F/g at 0.2 A/g in 6 M KOH in a three-electrode system. A symmetric supercapacitor was assembled in 2 M Li2SO4 electrolyte, and the carbon spheres activated by ZnCl2 showed excellent electrochemical performance with high specific capacitance (137 F/g at 0.5 A/g), energy densities (15.4 Wh/kg), and good cyclic stability (95% capacitance retention over 2000 cycles).

Lignin nanoparticles, the innovative achievements in the development and utilization of lignin, combine the structural characteristics of nanomaterials and lignin molecules and have a wide range of applications. In this review, we summarize the methods for preparing lignin nanoparticles by solvent exchange method, mechanical method, biological enzymatic method, interface polymerization/crosslinking method, and spray freezing method, and emphatically introduce the application prospects of lignin nanoparticles in ultraviolet protection, antibacterial, nano-filler, drug delivery, and adsorption, aiming to provide a certain reference direction for additional high-value applications of lignin nanoparticles.

To improve the physical strength of regenerated cellulose fibers, cellulose dissolution was analyzed with a conductor-like screening model for real solvents in which 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (AMIMCl) worked only as a hydrogen bond acceptor while dissolving the cellulose. This process could be promoted by the addition of urea, glycerol, and choline chloride. The dissolution and regeneration of cellulose was achieved through dry-jet and wet-spinning. The results demonstrated that the addition of hydrogen bond donors and acceptors either on their own or in combination can enhance the tensile strength, but their effects on the crystallinity of the regenerated fibers were quite limited. Compared with the regenerated fibers without any additives, the tensile strength was improved from 54.43 MPa to 139.62 MPa after introducing the choline chloride and glycerol, while related the crystallinity was only changed from 60.06% to 62.97%. By contrast, a more compact structure and fewer pores on the fiber surface were identified in samples with additives along with well-preserved cellulose frameworks. Besides, it should be noted that an optimization in the overall thermal stability was obtained in samples with additives. The significant effect of regenerated cellulose with the addition of glycerol was attributed to the reduction of cellulose damage by slowing down the dissolution and cross-linking in the cellulose viscose. The enhancement of the physical strength of regenerated cellulose fiber can be realized by the appropriate adjustment of the hydrogen bond distribution in the ionic liquid system with additives.

Abstract Background In the kraft-based dissolving pulp production process, pre-hydrolysis liquor (PHL) is produced, which contains hemicelluloses, lignin, furfural and acetic acid. PHL is currently burned in the recovery boiler of the kraft pulping process, but it can be utilized for the generation of high-valued products, such as xylitol and xylanase, via fermentation processes. However, some PHL constituents, e.g., furfural and lignin, are contaminants for fermentation processes and they must be eliminated for production of value-added products. Results In this work, a process is introduced for removing contaminants of PHL. Ca(OH)2 treatment is the first step of this process, which removed 41.2% of lignin and negligible amount of sugars. In this step, a notable increase in the concentration of acetic acid was achieved (ranging from 6.2 to 11.7 g/L). In the second step, the implementation of adsorption using activated carbon (AC) at 1 wt% dosage led to additional 32% lignin and 5.9% xylosugar removals. In addition, laccase assisted activated carbon treatment led to further removal of lignin via accelerating lignin polymerization and adsorption on AC (i.e., removal from PHL). Overall, 90.7% of lignin, 100% of furfural, 5.7% of xylose, and 12% of xylan were removed from PHL, while the concentration of acetic acid became twofolds in the PHL. Conclusions This study reports an attractive process for purifying sugars and acetic acid of PHL. This process may be implemented for producing sugar-based value-added products from PHL. It also discusses the mechanism of Ca(OH)2 treatment, AC adsorption and laccase assisted activated carbon treatment for lignin removal.

A novel and effective green system consisting of deep eutectic solvent (DES) was proposed to prepare lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) without any lignin modification. The LNPs are obtained through the dialysis of the kraft lignin-DES solution. The particle size distribution, Zeta potential and morphology of the LNPs are characterized by using dynamic light scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The average diameter of LNPs is in the range 123.6 to 140.7 nm, and the LNPs show good stability and dispersibility in water. The composite beads composed of LNPs and sodium alginate (SA) are highly efficient (97.1%) at removing methylene blue (MB) from the aqueous solution compared to 82.9% and 77.4% by the SA/bulk kraft lignin composite and pure SA, respectively. Overall, the LNPs-SA bio-nanocomposite with high adsorption capacity (258.5 mg/g) could be useful in improving water quality and other related applications.

In this study, a novel type of high-strength regenerated cellulose composite fiber reinforced with cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) and nanosilica (nano-SiO2) was prepared. Adding 1% CNF and 1% nano-SiO2 to pulp/AMIMCl improved the tensile strength of the composite cellulose by 47.46%. The surface of the regenerated fiber exhibited a scaly structure with pores, which could be reduced by adding CNF and nano-SiO2, resulting in the enhancement of physical strength of regenerated fibers. The cellulose/AMIMCl mixture with or without the addition of nanomaterials performed as shear thinning fluids, also known as “pseudoplastic” fluids. Increasing the temperature lowered the viscosity. The yield stress and viscosity sequences were as follows: RCF-CNF2 > RCF-CNF2-SiO22 > RCF-SiO22 > RCF > RCF-CNF1-SiO21. Under the same oscillation frequency, G’ and G” decreased with the increase of temperature, which indicated a reduction in viscoelasticity. A preferred cellulose/AMIMCl mixture was obtained with the addition of 1% CNF and 1% nano-SiO2, by which the viscosity and shear stress of the adhesive were significantly reduced at 80 °C.

A deep eutectic solvent (DES) composed of sulfamic acid and glycerol allowed for the sustainable preparation of cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) with simultaneous sulfation. The reaction time and the levels of sulfamic acid demonstrated that fibers could be swelled and sulfated simultaneously by a sulfamic acid-glycerol-based DES and swelling also promoted sulfation with a high degree of substitution (0.12). The DES-pretreated fibers were further nanofibrillated by a grinder producing CNF with diameters from 10 nm to 25 nm. The crystallinity ranged from 53–62%, and CNF maintained the original crystal structure. DES pretreatment facilitated cellulose nano-fibrillation and reduced the energy consumption with a maximum reduction of 35%. The films prepared from polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and CNF showed good UV resistance ability and mechanical properties. This facile and efficient method provided a more sustainable strategy for the swelling, functionalization and nano-fibrillation of cellulose, expanding its application to UV-blocking materials and related fields.

The presence of lignin hampers the utilization of hemicelluloses in the pre-hydrolysis liquor (PHL) from the kraft-based dissolving pulp production process. In this paper, a novel process for removing lignin from PHL was proposed by effectively recycling catalysts of BiOCl/BiOBr. During the whole process, BiOCl and BiOBr were not only adsorbents for removing lignin, but also photocatalysts for degrading lignin. The results showed that BiOCl and BiOBr treatments caused 36.3% and 33.9% lignin removal, respectively, at the optimized conditions, and the losses of hemicellulose-derived saccharides (HDS) were both 0.1%. The catalysts could be regenerated by simple photocatalytic treatment and obtain considerable CO and CO2. After 15 h of illumination, 49.9 μmol CO and 553.0 μmol CO2 were produced by BiOCl, and 38.7 μmol CO and 484.3 μmol CO2 were produced by BiOBr. Therefore, both BiOCl and BiOBr exhibit excellent adsorption and photocatalytic properties for lignin removal from pre-hydrolysis.

Fe3O4-SiO2-V3 was prepared by deposited H6PMo9V3O40 on Fe3O4-SiO2 and employed as a catalyst to extract lignin from corncob in deep eutectic solvent (choline chloride/lactic acid = 1/10). Batch experiments were conducted in an autoclave under the conditions of 500 kPa, 90–130 °C and 15 h, while the dosage of the catalyst was set as a variable. Results indicated that the catalyst could effectively improve the qualities of the lignin, while the characteristics of the lignin showed prominent changes with the participation of the catalyst: the extraction rate increased from 71.65% to 98.13%, the purity was improved from 85.62% to 97.09%, and both the number average molecular weight and the weight average molecular weight also decreased significantly. Besides, the molecular distribution of the lignin achieved from the CC-LA-Fe-Si-V3 reaction system was found to be more highly concentrated (Polydispersity index = 1.746). Results from 2D NMR HSQC analysis indicated that lignin fractions achieved from the CC-LA-Fe-Si-V3 system showed distinct destruction involving C2-H2 in guaiacyl units (G), C5-H5 in guaiacyl units (G), and the Cγ-Hγ in γ-hydroxylated β-O-4′ substructures, but little changes in the Cγ-Hγ in phenylcoumaran substructures.

Oxygen delignification presents high efficiency but causes damage to cellulose, therefore leading to an undesired loss in pulp strength. The effect of ionic liquid pretreatment of [BMIM][HSO4] and [TEA][HSO4] on oxygen delignification of the eucalyptus kraft pulp was investigated at 10% IL loading and 10% pulp consistency, after which composition analysis, pulp and fiber characterizations, and the mechanism of lignin degradation were carried out. A possible dual effect of enhancing delignification and protecting fibers from oxidation damage occurred simultaneously. The proposed [TEA][HSO4] pretreatment facilitated lignin removal in oxygen delignification and provided fibers with improved DP, fiber length and width, and curl index, resulting in the enhanced physical strength of pulp. Particularly, its folding endurance improved by 110%. An unusual brightness reduction was identified, followed by detailed characterization on the pulps and extracted lignin with FTIR, UV, XPS, and HSQC. It was proposed that [TEA][HSO4] catalyzed the cleavage of β-O-4 bonds in lignin during the oxygen delignification, with the formation of Hibbert’s ketones and quinonoid compounds. The decomposed lignin dissolved and migrated to the fiber surface, where they facilitated the access of the oxidation agent and protected the fiber framework from oxidation damage. Therefore, it was concluded that ionic liquid pretreatment has a dual effect on oxygen delignification.

Dilute sulfuric acid hydrolysis of Pennisetum (sp.) hemicellulose was investigated in this work. The hemicellulose was obtained by ethanol precipitation of hydrolysate produced via the microwave-assisted H2O2-NaOH extraction from the Pennisetum (sp.). Acid hydrolysis was performed by varying the process parameters, including the sulfuric acid concentration, hydrolysis temperature, solid to liquor ratio, and the reaction time. The xylose yield was selected as the target of process optimization and the orthogonal experiment of L9 (34) was designed to optimize the process conditions. The highest xylose yield of 86.5% could be obtained under the conditions of an acid concentration of 1%, the hydrolysis temperature of 105 °C, a solid to liquor ratio of 1:15, and a reaction time of 4 h. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed that most of the hemicellulose had been depolymerized into xylose.

Fractionation of lignocellulosic components is a prerequisite for maximizing valorization of plant biomass in an integrated biorefinery. In this study, microwave-assisted H2O2-NaOH extraction was developed for fractionation of Pennisetum sinese Roxb. (P. sinese), a highly productive energy crop. Different reaction conditions including solid-liquid ratio, NaOH concentration, H2O2 concentration, temperature, and time were tested for their effects on P. sinese fractionation. The cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin obtained under optimal fractionation conditions were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The optimal fractionation conditions were a solid-liquid ratio of 1:25 using 0.5% H2O2 and 4% NaOH at 75 °C for 4 h, which gave cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin yields of 42.8%, 21.9%, and 15.2%, respectively. FT-IR and NMR analyses of the fractionated components clearly confirmed their structural integrity and representation. The work demonstrates the potential of the alternative approach for efficient fractionation of lignocellulosic biomass components for further valorization.

The complex microstructure of lignocellulosic biomass restricts its conversion into bio-ethanol. In this study, the effects of an ionic liquid (IL) 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([Amim]Cl) pretreatment on the microstructure properties and cellulase hydrolysis efficiency of hybrid Pennisetum (P. americanum × P. purpureum, lignocellulosic biomass) were investigated. After the [Amim]Cl pretreatment, the bonds of lignin-carbohydrate complex (LCC) and C=O in xylan were destroyed and the content of inter-molecular H-bonds O(6)H…O(3’) decreased by 47.2%, while the content of intra-molecular H-bonds of O(2)H…O(6) and O(3)H…O(5) increased by 9.5% and 47.0%, respectively. The crystallinity and the crystallite size decreased by 20.8% and 42.22%, respectively, and the cellulose crystalline structure changed from cellulose crystalline I to cellulose crystalline II. The specific surface area increased from 0.15 to 10.11 m2/g after the [Amim]Cl pretreatment. The glucose recovery increased by 10.3 times after being pretreated with [Amim]Cl, compared with the unpretreated sample.

Abstract Supported atomically dispersed metals are proving to be efficacious photocatalysts for CO2 reduction to solar fuels. While being atom efficient, they suffer from being noble, rare, and costly (Pt, Pd, Au, Ag, Rh) and lacking in long‐term stability. Herein, all of these problems are solved with the discovery that atomically dispersed Cu supported on ultrathin TiO2 nanosheets can photocatalytically reduce an aqueous solution of CO2 to CO. The atomically dispersed Cu can be recycled in a straightforward procedure when they become oxidatively deactivated. This advance bodes well for the development of a solar fuels technology founded on abundant, low‐cost, nontoxic, atomically dispersed metal photocatalysts.

The poor barrier properties and hygroscopic nature of cellulosic paper impede the wide application of cellulosic paper as a packaging material. Herein, a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-based polymer coating was used to improve the barrier performance of paper through its good ability to form a film. Alkyl ketene dimer (AKD) was used to enhance the water resistance. The effect of the absorptive characteristics of the base paper on the barrier properties was explored, and it was shown that surface-sized base paper provides a better barrier performance than unsized base paper. Nanoclay (Cloisite Na+) was used in the coating formulation to further enhance the barrier performance. The results show that the coating of PVA/AKD/nanoclay dispersion noticeably improved the barrier performance of the paper. The water vapor transmission rate of the base paper was 533 g/m2·day, and it decreased sharply to 1.3 g/m2·day after the application of a double coating because of the complete coverage of the base paper by the PVA-based polymer coating. The coated paper had excellent water resistance owing to its high water contact angle of around 100°. The grease resistance and mechanical properties of the base paper also improved after coating. This work may provide inspiration for improving the barrier properties of packaging paper through the selection of a suitable base paper and coating formulation.

Cellulose nanofibril (CNF)-added polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) hydrogels were prepared using different types of CNFs and their properties were investigated. CNFs with different morphology and surface charge properties were prepared through quaternization and carboxymethylation pretreatments. The quaternized CNF exhibited the narrow and uniform width, and higher viscoelastic property compared to untreated and carboxymethylated CNF. When CNF was incorporated to PVP hydrogel, gel contents of all hydrogels were similar, irrespective of CNF addition quantity or CNF type. However, the absorptivity of the hydrogels in a swelling medium increased by adding CNF. In particular, the quaternized CNF-added PVP hydrogel exhibited the highest swelling ability. Unlike that of hydrogels with untreated and carboxymethylated CNFs, the storage modulus of PVP hydrogels after swelling significantly increased with an increase in the content of the quaternized CNF. These indicate that a PVP hydrogel with a high absorptivity and storage modulus can be prepared by incorporating the proper type of CNF.

Cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) were exposed to the same levels of potassium chloride (KCl) and sodium chloride (NaCl) before being subjected to spray drying. The effect of NaCl and KCl on the size of atomized droplets and the hydrogen bond retardation between CNFs was investigated by characterizing product morphology, particle size distribution, dispersion stability in aqueous system, and surface chemistry. The results showed that the CNF suspensions treated with KCl could be atomized into smaller droplets during spray drying, and then CNF powder with smaller sizes could be obtained. As the agglomeration was less, and the CNF with KCl addition had good dispersion stability after redispersion compared with CNF treated by NaCl. Therefore, KCl treatment was an effective method to reduce the agglomeration of CNF during spray drying.

Lignin nanomaterials have wide application prospects in the fields of cosmetics delivery, energy storage, and environmental governance. In this study, we developed a simple and sustainable synthesis approach to produce uniform lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) by dissolving industrial lignin in deep eutectic solvents (DESs) followed by a self-assembling process. LNPs with high yield could be obtained through nanoprecipitation. The LNPs were characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). Distinct LNPs could be produced by changing the type of DES, lignin sources, pre-dropping lignin concentration, and the pH of the system. Their diameter is in the range of 20–200 nm and they show excellent dispersibility and superior long-term stability. The method of preparing LNPs from lignin–DES with water as an anti-solvent is simple, rapid, and environmentally friendly. The outcome aids to further the advancement of lignin-based nanotechnology.

Xylose residue (XR), the abundant industrial residue from commercial xylose production, was delignified using alkali as a substrate for ethanol production via simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF). It was found that pretreatment with 1.5% (w/v) NaOH at 140 °C for 1.5 h was optimal for delignification efficiency (72.2%) and low cellulose loss (7.1%). The physical changes in samples after alkaline pretreatment were characterized for crystallinity and imaged using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which demonstrated that the surface of samples became coarser with lignin removal. There were rather significant changes in cellulose crystallinity. The widespread accessibility of cellulose in XR favored enzymatic hydrolysis and achieved considerable bioconversion (98.8% with 15 PFU/g substrate). The maximum for ethanol concentration using SSF bioconversion reached 16.3 g/L, which was about four times more than that of the untreated sample. XR treated using the processes of alkaline pretreatment and SSF was an excellent substrate for bioconversion.

The use of supercritical water for the decomposition of lignin and evaluation of its influence on lignin decomposition and conversion to various products was the thrust of the current study. Poplar alkali lignin (AL), corncob-to-xylitol residue lignin (XRL), and cornstalk-to-ethanol residue lignin (ERL) were the lignin species studied because they constitute the main residual lignins available in the biomass refinery industry. The lignins were characterized by elementary analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FT-IR), phosphorus nuclear magnetic resonance (31P-NMR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), and their hydrothermal depolymerization products were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC–MS). The results showed that the residual lignin is a potential source for valuable aromatics. The XRL had the best total phenolics yield, 140 mg/g, while AL had the lowest, 90 mg/g. The maximum yields of phenol (28.94 mg/g) and 4-ethylphenol (36.21 mg/g) were obtained from XRL depolymerization at 375 °C for 30 min, and the optimal yields of guaiacol (14.34 mg/g) and 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (15.67 mg/g) were achieved by AL at 375 °C for 30 min. The information here provides some insights toward developing selective biorefinery methods for lignin-to-organic products conversion processes.

The effect of altering the carbon source in the growing environment was investigated relative to the production of ligninolytic enzymes by Phanerochaete chrysosporium. Glucose, cellobiose, and cellulose (or mixtures thereof) were used as the carbon sources. Glucose oxidase and glyoxal oxidase activities in all carbon sources were produced during cultivation. High peak levels (0.17 to 0.24 IU/mL) of manganese peroxidase activity were observed only in mediums containing oligosaccharides. Lignin peroxidase activity was high in glucose medium (0.21 IU/mL of peak value); however, minimal amounts were formed in the cellulose medium (0.01 IU/mL of peak value). High amounts of cellobiose:quinone oxidoreductase (3.33-3.99 IU/mL of peak value) and cellobiose dehydrogenase (0.04-0.2 IU/mL of peak value) were measured when P. chrysosporium was grown on a medium containing cellulose. This work discovered that the mixture of glucose and cellulose as a carbon source favored high co-production of ligninolytic enzymes by P. chrysosporium.

A synthetic method for obtaining a lignin model compound of β-O-4 structure, guaiacyl glycerol-β-guaiacyl ether, was researched through five reaction steps from guaiacol. The key step of this synthetic method was the condensation reaction between 4-(α-bromoacetyl)-guaiacol (III) and guaiacol (I). The compounds were characterized by 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-NMR) and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (2D-NMR). Pyrolysis behaviors of guaiacyl glycerol-β-guaiacyl ether were investigated by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS). The thermal behavior and the evolution profiles of major volatile fragments from the guaiacyl glycerol-β-guaiacyl ether pyrolysis were evaluated. Guaiacol is the major product through Cβ-O homolysis at low temperatures. Cβ-O homolysis and Cβ-O concerted decomposition occurred at moderate temperatures, producing guaiacol, 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde, 2-methoxybenzaldehyde, and various phenolic compounds. At high temperatures, the products obtained from Cβ-O homolysis and Cβ-O concerted decomposition experienced secondary thermal cracking, generating a large number of small molecule products, which increased the complexity of the pyrolytic products.

Xylanase treatment can be an environmentally friendly way to improve the formability and drainability of chemi-mechanical pulp (CMP). Improvements in xylanase treatment efficiency are possible with application of an ultrasonic wave via the cavitation effect. Results showed that the specific surface area (SSA) of the combined treated pulp increased by 14.6% at an ultrasonic treatment of 30 min and xylanase dosage of 10 U/g, in comparison to xylanase treatment alone. Also, the drainability of xylanase-treated pulp increased from 450 to 500 mL, and it further increased to 775 mL with ultrasonic-assisted xylanase treatment. Morphological characterization of pulps showed an enhanced fibrillation for the combined treatment, as shown by scanning electron microscope (SEM) images. In addition, the dimensions of treated fibers were negligibly affected.

An enzymatic mild acidic hydrolysis was used to separate and purify residual lignin from alkaline peroxide mechanical pulp (APMP). Using the optimum conditions for the laccase treatment (pH 4.5, temperature 50 °C, lignin consistency of 1%, a reaction time of 60 min, and a laccase dosage of 8 μ/g), oven-dried lignin was treated with laccase and in a laccase mediator system (LMS) to explore the mechanism for laccase and the LMS modification of APMP. The changes of functional groups in lignin were analyzed using nuclear magnetic resonance (31P-NMR and 13C-NMR). The molecular weight distributions of the lignin samples were confirmed by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The 31P-NMR and 13C-NMR spectra revealed that the lignin structure changed significantly with the laccase and the LMS treatments. Meanwhile, GPC demonstrated that laccase without a mediator could lead to the polymerization of lignin, while the LMS could degrade the lignin. Hence, it was concluded that laccase is an attractive enzyme for lignin modification.

A new chelating material from mercerized cotton linter was prepared by a reaction with succinic anhydride in the presence of toluene/triethylamine and a 4-dimethylaminopyridine catalyst, followed by reacting with Fe(III) to obtain the final product. The materials were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectrometer; the adsorption of chromium(VI) from an aqueous solution was examined. The Langmuir isotherm accurately fit the experimental data, and the calculated adsorption ability of Fe(III)-loaded adsorbent for chromium(VI) was 11.1 mg/g. The adsorption process followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model.

A new fast-growing wood raw material, willow (Salix matsudana cv. Zhuliu), was subjected to pulping to identify the structure of its lignin. Thus, the black liquor lignin (AL) and enzymatic mild acidolysis lignin (EMAL) were prepared, and their molecular structure and molecular weight of the isolated lignin polymers were comprehensively investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (2D-NMR HSQC), 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (13C-NMR), and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The NMR results showed that syringyl (S) unit was the predominant structural monomeric unit in willow lignin, as opposed to guaiacyl (G) and p-hydroxyphenyl (H) units. The S/G ratio for the EMAL was found to be 2.02, whereas that for the AL was 0.94. The lignin in the black liquor (AL) fraction was modified during pulping, as shown by its reduced molecular weight. The two isolated lignin polymers, EMAL and AL showed low weight-average molecular weight: 4127 g/mol and 3522.5 g/mol, and in addition they exhibited low polydispersity index (Mw/Mn < 2.0).

With currently practiced technology, lignin is either incinerated in the recovery cycle of pulping or wasted in wastewater treatment systems, resulting in its underutilization. However, lignin can be converted to value-added products. In this work, the copolymerization of soda lignin (SL) and acrylamide (AM) was carried out using potassium persulphate (K2S2O8) as an initiator in an aqueous solution to prepare water-soluble lignin-acrylamide (SL-AM) copolymer as a dry strength additive. The results showed that the optimal copolymerization conditions were 7.5 AM/SL molar ratio, 3.0 wt.% (based on lignin) of K2S2O8, 90 °C, and 4 h of reaction time, which resulted in a SL-AM copolymer with 100% solubility at 10 g/L concentration at pH 7 in water, a grafting ratio of 398%, and a molecular weight of 1.94×105 g/mol. The prepared SL-AM copolymer was characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (H-NMR) spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). By adding 1.0 wt.% of SL-AM copolymer to the pulp, the tensile, tear, and burst strengths were increased by 23.1%, 22.7%, and 15.2%, respectively, which implies that the resultant copolymer was an effective strength additive for papermaking.

Corn stalk rind (CSR) was treated with Trametes hirsuta lg-9 and then refined into pulp. The biotreatment resulted in loss of paper strength and brightness, but energy consumption during refining (ECR) was reduced. Meanwhile, multiple linear regression was carried out, for which ECR served as the dependent variable, and the yield and infrared relative absorbance intensities at 3414 cm-1 and 1653 cm-1 of the biotreated CSR served as independent variables. Results showed that the determining parameters of the biotreated CSR may be used to predict the ECR. In this work, delignified corn stalk pith (CSP) was added to aspen alkaline hydrogen peroxide mechanical pulp (APMP). The CSP enhanced the strength properties of the aspen APMP and inhibited yellowing. The biomechanical pulping of CSR has the potential to produce a low-cost green pulp, and the delignified CSP can serve as a pulp additive.

With the development of nanotechnology, gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) have attracted enormous attention due to their special properties. The green synthesis of Au NPs from lignin would inspire the utilization of lignin and its related functional materials. In this study, a rapid preparation process of Au NPs was investigated by utilizing lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) under room temperature without chemical addition. The LNPs acted as a reducing agent, stabilizing agent, and template for the preparation of LNPs@AuNPs. The obtained LNPs@AuNPs were characterized by UV-Vis spectrum, Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The possible mechanism was illustrated by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), 31P, XPS, and UV analyses. The abundant hydroxyl groups (24.96 mmol/g) favored the preparation of Au NPs. Au NPs diameters of 10–30 nm were well dispersed in the LNPs. The optimal reaction conditions were a ratio of 10 mg of LNPs to 0.05 mmol HAuCl4, room temperature, and a reaction time of 30 min. The LNPs@AuNPs exhibited excellent stability in the suspension for more than seven days. The reduction process could be related to the disruption of side chains of lignin, hydroxyl group oxidation, and hydroquinones and quinones from the comproportionation reaction. The LNPs@AuNPs would open a door for the design of Au NP/lignin-derived novel functional materials.