Chemistry, Structures, and Advanced Applications of Nanocomposites from Biorenewable Resources.

TLDR: This comprehensive review provides chemistry, structures, advanced applications, and recent developments about nanocomposites obtained from biorenewable sources.

Abstract: Researchers have recently focused on the advancement of new materials from biorenewable and sustainable sources because of great concerns about the environment, waste accumulation and destruction, and the inevitable depletion of fossil resources. Biorenewable materials have been extensively used as a matrix or reinforcement in many applications. In the development of innovative methods and materials, composites offer important advantages because of their excellent properties such as ease of fabrication, higher mechanical properties, high thermal stability, and many more. Especially, nanocomposites (obtained by using biorenewable sources) have significant advantages when compared to conventional composites. Nanocomposites have been utilized in many applications including food, biomedical, electroanalysis, energy storage, wastewater treatment, automotive, etc. This comprehensive review provides chemistry, structures, advanced applications, and recent developments about nanocomposites obtained from biorenewable sources.

Figures

Figure 23. The preparation of developed CH/nano-lignin based composites and usage of to remove MB. Reproduced with permission from ref 202. Copyright 2019 Elsevier.

Table 8. Packing applications of nanocomposites from bio-renewable resources

Table 4. Antimicrobial applications of nanocomposites from bio-renewable resources

Figure 3. Preparation methods of nanocomposites obtained bio-renewable sources for biomedical applications.

Figure 11. Schematic illustration of tissue engineering applications of porous bio-renewable composites.

Figure 42. The general structure and working mechanism of the hybrid symmetric supercapacitor by bio-renewable corn silks based porous carbon and redox-active electrolytes. Reproduced with permission from ref 309. Copyright 2018 Elsevier.

Full text

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Chemistry, Structures and Advanced Applications of Nanocomposites from
Bio-Renewable Resources
Burhan Ates
a
, Suleyman Koytepe
a
, Ahmet Ulu
a
, Canbolat Gurses
b
, Vijay Kumar Thakur
c,d,e*
a
Inonu University, Department of Chemistry, 44280 Malatya, Turkey
b
Inonu University, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, 44280 Malatya, Turkey
c
Biorefining and Advanced Materials Research Center, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC),
Kings Buildings, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UK
d
Enhanced Composites and Structures Center, School of Aerospace, Transport and
Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL, UK
e
Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, Shiv Nadar University, Uttar
Pradesh 201314, India.
*
Correspondence to Professor Vijay Kumar Thakur (PhD), SRUC, UK.
E-mail: Vijay.Thakur@sruc.ac.uk; vijayisu@hotmail.com
Tel: +44 (0) 1387242906
Chemical Reviews, Volume 120, Issue 17, 2020, pp. 9304-9362
DOI:10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00553

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ABSTRACT
Researchers have recently focused on the advancement of new materials from bio-renewable
and sustainable sources because of the great concerns about environmental, waste accumulation
and destruction, and the inevitable depletion of fossil resources. The bio-renewable-based
materials have been extensively used as a matrix or reinforcement in many applications. In the
development of innovative methods and materials, composites offer important advantages
because of their excellent properties such as ease of fabrication, higher mechanical properties,
high thermal stability, and many more. Especially, the nanocomposites (obtained by using bio-
renewable sources) have significant advantages when compared to conventional composites.
The nanocomposites have been utilized in many applications ranging from food, biomedical,
electroanalysis, energy storage, wastewater treatment, automotive etc. This comprehensive
review provides chemistry, structures, advanced applications and recent developments about
nanocomposites obtained from bio-renewable sources.
Keywords: Bio-renewable sources; nanocomposites; natural polymers; reinforcement; advanced
applications
BIOGRAPHY
Burhan Ates is currently a professor at Inonu University (Turkey). He received a PhD degree
from Inonu University, Chemistry Department in 2007. He was a postdoctoral researcher in
the Department of Chemistry, University of Missouri Rolla, the USA from 2007 to 2008. His
research interests focus on the design of biocompatible polymeric tissue adhesive materials and
their biomedical applications, anticancer drug development, L-asparaginase immobilization
and biosensor.
Published by ACS. This is the Author Accepted Manuscript issued with: Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (CC:BY:NC 4.0).
The final published version (version of record) is available online at DOI:10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00553. Please refer to any applicable publisher terms of use.

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BIOGRAPHY
Suleyman Koytepe is a professor of Chemistry at Inonu University in Turkey. He graduated
B.Sc. in Chemistry at Inonu University, Malatya. He obtained his M.Sc. and a PhD degree in
physical chemistry and polymer chemistry at Inonu University. His research focuses on the
polymeric sensor, polymeric nanocomposite, nanotechnology, and nanomaterials. Also, he
works on the synthesis of polymeric biomaterials and the design of biosensors.
BIOGRAPHY
Ahmet Ulu graduated in 2008 with a degree in the Department of Chemistry at Gaziosmanpaşa
University, Tokat-Turkey. Afterwards, He received a master’s degree in chemistry in 2014 and
his PhD in 2019, both from Chemistry from the Inonu University, Malatya-Turkey under the
supervision of Prof. Burhan Ates. He is currently a chemist at the Inonu University, working in
mainly the following subjects: the immobilization of enzymes, biodegradable polymeric stents,
and nanoparticles.
BIOGRAPHY
Canbolat Gurses is currently a research assistant at Inonu University (Turkey) in the
Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics. He received an MSc degree from the
University of Washington, Materials Science and Engineering department in 2012. Now, he is
a PhD candidate for both biochemistry and molecular biology. His research interests focus on
the investigations related to cytotoxicity and genotoxicity properties of bio-adhesives as well
as antimicrobial and DNA binding activities of new generation complexes.
BIOGRAPHY
Vijay Kumar Thakur is currently a Professor in New Products from Biomass in the
Biorefining and Advanced Materials Research Centre at SRUC, Edinburgh, UK and also holds
an Adjunct Professor position in the Research School of Polymeric Materials, Jiangsu

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University, China; Visiting Professor at Shiv Nadar University India and Visitor at Cranfield
University, UK. He has previously held faculty positions at Cranfield University UK,
Washington State University USA, and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. His
research activities span the disciplines of Biorefining, Chemistry, Chemical
Engineering, Manufacturing, Materials Science and Nanotechnology, as well as all aspects of
Sustainable and Advanced Materials. He has been a PI/ Co-I on several projects sponsored by
BAE Systems; EPSRC (EP/T024607/1); Royal Academy of Engineering (IAPP-33-
24/01/2017; IAPP18-19\295); UKIERI (DST/INT/UK/P-164/2017); Innovate UK and others.
He has published over 170 SCI journal articles, 2 patents, 50 books & 37 book chapters in areas
concerning polymers, nanotechnology and materials science (Hi 66, Citations >13,000). He sits
on the editorial board of several SCI journals (e.g. Nature Scientific Reports, Industrial Crops
& Products, J of Renewable Materials, Adv. Polym. Tech., Int. J. Polym. Anal. Charact., Polym.
Adv. Technol., Biomolecules, Nanomaterials, Surfaces and Interfaces, Nano-Structures &
Nano-Objects etc) as an Editor/Editorial Advisory Board member.
CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Overview of Nanocomposite Materials Containing Petroleum-Based Polymers
1.2. Need for Nanocomposites from Bio-Renewable Resources
1.3. Bio-Renewable Resources Used for Nanocomposites Preparation
1.4. Processing Methods of Nanocomposites from Bio-Renewable Resources
1.4.1. Melt mixing
1.4.2. In-situ polymerization
1.4.3. Solution mixing
1.4.4. Extrusion
1.4.5. Sol-gel process
1.4.6. Hand-Lay-Up and Spray-Up techniques
1.4.7. Resin Transfer Molding or Resin Injection Methods
1.4.8. Other methods

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2. Chemistry, Structure and Biomedical Applications of Nanocomposites from Bio-
Renewable Resources
2.1. Drug Delivery Applications
2.2. Tissue Engineering Applications
2.3. Gene Therapy Applications
2.4. Antimicrobial Applications
3. Chemistry, Structure and Separation Applications of Nanocomposites from Bio-
Renewable Resources
3.1. Water Purification Applications
3.1.1. Removal of Dyes
3.1.2. Removal of Other Contaminants
3.2. Gas Purification Applications
3.3. Dye Purification Applications
3.4. Other Membrane Applications
4. Chemistry, Structure and Electronic Applications
4.1. Chemistry, Structure, and Sensing Applications
4.1.1. Biosensor Applications of Chitosan-Based Nanocomposites
4.1.2. Biosensor Applications of Cellulose-Based Nanocomposites
4.1.3. Biosensor Applications of β-Cyclodextrin-Based Nanocomposites
4.1.4. Biosensor Applications of Guar Gum-Based Nanocomposites
4.1.5. Other Sensor Applications
4.2. Chemistry, Structure, and Energy Storage Applications of Nanocomposites from
Bio-Renewable Resources
4.2.1. Energy Storage Applications of Chitosan-Based Nanocomposites
4.2.2. Energy Storage Applications of Cellulose-Based Nanocomposites
4.2.3. Energy Storage Applications of Other Renewable Resource-Based
Nanocomposites
5. Chemistry, Structure and Packing Applications of Nanocomposites from Bio-
Renewable Resources
6. Chemistry, Structure and Optic Applications of Nanocomposites from Bio-Renewable
Resources
7. Chemistry, Structure and Automotive Applications of Nanocomposites from Bio-
Renewable Resources

Frequently asked questions

Q1. What are the common materials used in the production of polymer composites?

graphite, glass fibres, clays silica, carbon nanotubes, and silica have been often used as reinforcement materials during the production of these polymer composites. 

Q2. What are the important features expected in nanocomposites?

The most important common features expected in nanocomposites made from bio-renewable resources are biocompatibility, biodegradability, easy preparation, low density, inexpensive and suitability for modifications. 

Q3. What are the common techniques used to make polymeric composites?

In particular, techniques such as melt intercalation, extrusion, and insitu polymerization which are commonly applied to the production of polymeric nanocomposites, have been applied to bio-based polymeric composites in the last decade. 

Q4. Why are bio-renewable resources used in nanocomposite membranes?

protein, lignin and polysaccharides such as cellulose and chitin are widely utilized in nanocomposite membrane structures due to their cheap, renewable, environmentally friendly and biodegradability characteristics. 

Q5. What are the common materials used for the modification of the electrode?

In electrochemical sensor applications, polymers, nanocomposites, and inorganic polymeric films are used for the modification of the electrode. 

Q6. What is the advantage of bio-renewable composites?

The porous and high polar structure of bio-renewable composites provides an important advantage for water purification applications. 

Q7. Why do nanocomposite ceramics show enhanced surface wettability?

because of great surface roughness and grain boundaries on their surfaces, nanocomposite ceramics show enhanced surface wettability. 

Q8. What are the suitable resolutions for the negative environmental effects of petroleum-based waste?

To minimize the negative environmental effects of post-consumer petroleum-based waste, bio-renewable and eco-friendly materials are the most suitable resolutions. 

Q9. What are the main techniques used to produce bio-based composites?

Sol-gel methodology and hybrid composite production techniques, which are used to overcome the mechanical strength problem, which is a fundamental problem in bio-based composites, are still at the academic level and are not frequently applied industrially. 

Q10. What is the main reason why cellulose is being researched and improved as a sensor?

polymer-graphene composite materials are being researched and improved as a sensor in chemical and biomedical applications due to their low cost and flexibility. 

Q11. What are the main applications of nanocomposites?

Applications of nanocomposites have been considerably developed in engineering, plastic, rubber, coating, adhesive, electronic and optic materials. 

Q12. Why did the authors suggest that the sensor could be further improved?

the authors suggested that the sensor may be further improved by a distinct dispersion technique or composite structure optimization, such as hierarchical structure or organic-inorganic coaxial hybrid because of good sensing performance. 

Q13. How did Maji et al. 116 prepare a graphene-a?

Maji et al. 116 prepared a graphene-amyloid hybrid nanocomposite film for alignment anddifferentiation of cells on glassy-like materials to mimic in vivo conditions using a novel type of scaffold. 

Q14. How much is the post-consumer plastic waste that can be reused?

according to the plastics recycling and recovering data results, post-consumer plastic waste that can be reused is estimated to be only 39.5%. 

Q15. What is the effect of the cellulose nano-hydrogel composites on methylene?

According to the obtained adsorption curves, the research group had reported that the S/cellulose nano-hydrogel composites had an effective ability to remove methylene blue from wastewater. 

Q16. What are the main characteristics of flame retardant reinforcements?

In various aspects, flame retardant reinforcements can be classified according to their basic mechanisms, targeting polymer types, containing an element or compound types. 

Q17. What is the effect of the amide ends of CH on the adsorption of heavy?

It is well known that because of the chelating effect of the amide ends of CH in the glucosamine group, it adsorbs many heavy metal ions. 

Q18. What is the effect of the inclusion of nanofillers on the protein film?

The inclusion of the nanofillers has caused swelling of the protein film as well as lowering the water vapor permeability (Figure 45). 

Q19. What were the parameters that were optimized for the detection of tryptophan?

Some important parameters such as the amount of nanocomposite, pH of the solution, and the rate of voltammetry scan had been also optimized. 

Q20. How have researchers been able to reduce the extensive use of petroleum-based polymers?

to diminish the extensive usage of petroleum-based polymers, researchers have been investigating the design of polymer composites in terms of better performance and cost. 

Q21. What are the advantages of using nanocomposite-based treatment membranes?

developments in engineering and nanotechnology show that many of the present problems concerned with the quality of water can be reduced by using nanocomposite-based treatment membranes. 

Q22. What is the effect of sepiolite on the thermal properties of natural fibres?

It had been observed that the addition of 2-5 % w/w of sepiolite did not affect the thermal and mechanical properties of the natural fibre nanocomposites.