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This study investigates the potential of agricultural by-products, rich in lignocellulosic materials, as sustainable food packaging materials to mitigate the environmental issues associated with nonbiodegradable plastics and styrofoam. Starch-based biodegradable food trays were developed using agricultural by-products, including sorghum stalk, rice straw, and kraft pulp through thermopressing method. By combining varying proportions of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and a sorghum-rice straw fiber mixture, biodegradable foam products with notable strength, water resistance, and cost-effectiveness for large-scale production were produced, exhibiting densities between 0.7 and 0.8 gr/m³. Notably, a 5% PVA composition in the sorghum fiber biodegradable foam displayed favourable mechanical properties and water resistance, with a tensile strength of 5 MPa and a contact angle of 73.79°, coupled with an appealing physical appearance. However, increasing PVA concentration beyond this level had negligible effects, indicates the optimal limit of PVA. Additionally, the distinct roles of rice straw powder as a matrix and sorghum fiber as reinforcement within the biodegradable foam were identified. Biodegradation tests revealed natural decomposition starting from the seventh day, with over 95% growth of Aspergillus Niger fungus, suggesting that these biodegradable foam products hold promise for mass production in the packaging industry, presenting a sustainable alternative to conventional plastic packaging.

Biobased adsorbents have been developed for the removal of dye contaminants in aqueous solution. Hydrogel beads from alginate containing TEMPO-oxidized cellulose nanofibers (TOCNF) grafted with polyethyleneimine (PEI), namely Al/TOCNF-PEI, were prepared and evaluated as a new adsorbent for Congo Red (CR). The Al/TOCNF-PEI hydrogel beads were made with various concentrations of TOCNF/PEI, the optimum concentration is 45 wt% or Al/TOCNF-PEI45. The hydrogel was characterized by using Fourier-Transform Infrared spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy. The adsorption performance of the Al/TOCNF-PEI hydrogel beads towards CR was investigated in terms of changing of TOCNF-PEI content, initial concentration, pH, contact time, and adsorbent dosage. The maximum capacity of the adsorbent for CR was found to be 9.437 mg/g at the optimal conditions (pH = 3; T = RT) with the removal efficiency reaching 95 %. This result was ascribed to occur due to the electrostatic attraction between the protonated hydroxyl group and ammonium moiety of the hydrogel beads and the anionic sulfonate group of the CR. Upon fitting the adsorption data, the adsorption mechanism was consistent with the Freundlich isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models. Based on this finding, the low-cost Al/TOCNF-PEI45 hydrogel beads demonstrated a great potential for the removal of hazardous dyes in wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, water-soluble chitosan (WSC) has been developed through a pressurized hydrolysis process. Compared to acid-soluble chitosan, the WSC is soluble in water, and it is used in many applications such as pharmaceutical, food, and composite industries. The FTIR and thermal properties such as TGA were investigated to determine the effect as a sizing agent material on paper composite. Furthermore, the influence of pulp weight variation of 1, 1.5, and 2 g and WSC concentration of 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1.0% (w/v) on the physical, mechanical, and antimicrobial properties of the paper composites were studied. The density and grammage increased after incorporating due to the increase in the dissolved concentration of WSC. The mechanical properties, such as tensile strength, tensile modulus, and elongation at break, were also improved to the highest value of 2.76 MPa, 170.58 MPa, and 2.67% at 1.0% WSC and 1 g pulp concentration, respectively. The paper composite incorporated WSC also showed antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria and Gram-negative (Escherichia coli). However, increased concentration of WSC up to 1% caused inhibition zone of Gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhi) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis) bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• High-performance binderless particleboard using oil palm trunk was manufactured. • Ammonium dihydrogen phosphate was good additive. • The mechanical and physical properties of the binderless particleboard was improved. • The binderless particleboard had excellent dimensional stability. The inner part (i.e., two-thirds of the diameter) of oil palm trunk (OPT) generally becomes waste because of its insufficient properties (e.g., low strength, low durability). Herein we attempted to use the inner part of OPT as a raw material of binderless particleboard in order to change this waste into an environmentally friendly value-added product. In this study, ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (ADP) was used as an additive, and the effect of ADP additions on the properties of particleboard manufacturing using the inner part of OPT was investigated. The ADP additions were varied from 0 to 40 wt%. First, thermal analyses were conducted to clarify the effect of ADP addition on the thermal properties of the OPT, and it was observed that the thermal properties of the OPT were significantly lowered with the increase in ADP additions. Based on these results, particleboards with a target density of 0.8 g/cm3 were manufactured under the pressing condition of 180 °C for 10 min. The physical and mechanical properties of the particleboards were improved with the addition of ADP until 10 wt%. The water resistance was also significantly improved. It was suggested that part of the water-soluble components of OPT particles would change to water-insoluble components by the addition of ADP. Our findings demonstrate that the addition of ADP was effective for improving the physical and mechanical properties of particleboard using the inner part of OPT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]