Liheng Chen

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors reported the production of highly thermal stable and functional cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) and nanofibrils (CNF) by hydrolysis using concentrated organic acids.

TL;DR: In this article, the basic properties of CNC, such as morphology, crystallinity, degree of sulfation and yield, as a function of production condition variables, were explored for cellulose nanocrystals, and it was shown that CNC yields as high as 70% from a bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp with glucan content of 78% under a tight range of reaction conditions.

TL;DR: The discovery of the hydrotropic properties of a recyclable aromatic acid, p-toluenesulfonic acid (p-TsOH), for potentially low-cost and efficient fractionation of wood through rapid and near-complete dissolution of lignin.

TL;DR: Di-carboxylic acid hydrolysis for the integrated production of lignin containing cellulose nanocrystals (LCNC) and nanofibrils (LCNF) using two unbleached mixed hardwood chemical pulps is demonstrated and LCNC and LCNF are favorable for composite applications.

TL;DR: In this article, a novel acid hydrotrope, p-toluenesulfonic acid (p-TsOH), was used for the rapid and nearly complete dissolution of wood lignin below the boiling temperature of water.