Preparation and Characterization of Hydrophobic Bagasse Hemicellulose-based Films

To improve the hydrophobicity of bagasse hemicellulose-based films, glutaraldehyde was applied when preparing films of original and cationic bagasse hemicellulose with the addition of polyvinyl alcohol and sorbitol. The results showed that the cationic modification could increase the hydrophobicity of the hemicellulose-based film, and the hydrophobicity of hemicellulose-based films crosslinked with glutaraldehyde also increased. However, cationic modification of hemicellulose decreased the stress of the hemicellulose-based film. While crosslinking with glutaraldehyde increased the stress of both the original and cationic hemicellulose-based films. Macrophotography indicated that the film formability of the original hemicellulose was better than that of cationic hemicellulose. Through SEM observation, the degree of bonding of different components of the films was found to be increased due to crosslinking with glutaraldehyde. The crosslinking reaction between glutaraldehyde and hemicellulose was further confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy.     

Soluble dietary fibres from sugarcane bagasse

Soluble dietary fibres from sugarcane bagasse were extracted under alkaline conditions and characterised. Precipitated fibres were dialysed, and the fibre composition was evaluated before and after the dialysis step. Compositional analysis indicated that the fibres both before and after dialysis consisted of 39% w/w total sugars, 16% w/w protein, 10% w/w Klason lignin and 30% w/w ash. Xylose was the main neutral sugar followed by arabinose with glucose, galactose and uronic acids also present in all samples. The structural properties were also spectroscopically examined, which confirmed the presence of arabinoxylans. Macromolecular characterisation revealed that molecular weight is reduced after dialysis, indicating that a range of dietary fibres with different macromolecular characteristics may be obtained depending on the specific processing steps. The present work shows that soluble arabinoxylans may be obtained from sugarcane agricultural wastes that may be used as a source of novel dietary fibres.     

From agrowaste to graphene nanosheets: chemistry and synthesis

In recent years, graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (r-GO) are being produced using graphite powder as precursor material but the preparation of graphene derivatives from a non-graphitic material without an additional oxidizing agent has not been reported so far. In this work, an agrowaste namely sugarcane bagasse was subjected to pyrolysis at three different temperatures, bypassing the use of toxic chemicals and graphite as a precursor. The chemistry of the effect of temperature and time on the development of graphitic planes in a non-graphitic material was studied. The formation of nanosheets of GO suggested that aromatization and condensation of the glucose monomers might have taken place which led to the glycosidic bond formation, further converging into polyaromatic rings on pyrolysis. The GO was further reduced at 95?°C using thiourea which resulted in the formation of r-GO after 8?hrs.     

Etherification of Alkali-pretreated Sugarcane Bagasse Cellulose in Tetrahydrofuran

Sugarcane bagasse (SCB) is an important by-product in the sugar industry. It is a source of cellulose fibers or cellulose for paper mills and textiles factories. In this study, SCB was ethyl etherified in tetrahydrofuran (THF) after alkali pretreatment. The alkali concentration for the pre-treatment, the ratio of ethyl bromide (EtBr) to dried SCB in the reaction, reaction time, and temperature were investigated for the etherification of SCB. The ethoxyl content and characterization of the product were determined using headspace gas chromatography (HS-GC), Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) and ¹³C-NMR spectroscopy, respectively. It was found that SCB was well-etherified with EtBr in alkali-THF. Upon ethylation of SCB, the ethoxyl content of the product was high when the alkali concentration and the ratio of EtBr to dried SCB were controlled from 50% to 75% and 4:1 (V/w) to 6:1 (V/w), respectively. The reaction occurred optimally when the temperature was controlled below 110℃; above this temperature, the degree of etherification decreased. The thermal stability of ethylated SCB was higher than that of SCB but slightly lower than that of commercial ethyl cellulose. Ethylated SCB has the potential to form composites with many materials because it is soluble in a wide variety of solvents.     

Incorporation of sugarcane bagasse in the development of high dietary fibre noodles

Sugarcane bagasse (SB) is one of the most abundant food wastes. In this research, SB was incorporated into the development of noodles at three different ratios, i.e. 5%, 10% and 15%. Total dietary fibre of noodles significantly increased from 3.39% (control noodles; – without SB) to 13.85% with 15% SB incorporation. All SB incorporated noodles (SBNs) were qualified to be labelled as ‘High in dietary fibre’. The 15% SBN had the highest fibre content and lowest dialyzable glucose, but the organoleptic properties were the lowest. Due to that, 5% SBN was deemed to be the most suitable ratio for noodles incorporation, as it had the closest value towards the commercial noodles in terms of colour, texture, fibre content and dialyzable glucose concentration of noodles samples. In terms of sensory evaluation, the 5% SBN had the highest overall acceptability, and the ratio was suitable for noodles development.     

汽爆甘蔗渣转化乙醇的实验研究

研究了甘蔗渣的汽爆条件,并利用高效液相色谱（HPLC）对甘蔗渣汽爆产物进行了分析。在相同汽爆蒸汽压力下,随着汽爆保压时间的延长,降解产生的对后续酶解和发酵有害的物质甲酸、乙酸和糠醛等也随之增加。研究了汽爆甘蔗渣的酶解和发酵性能,在实验室小试的基础上,进一步利用50 L发酵罐进行放大的酶解和发酵实验,在酶解液固形物浓度27.09%（ω）条件下,48 h发酵液乙醇浓度6.17%（φ）,显示汽爆甘蔗渣能够较好地被转化用于生产乙醇。     

聚合物／甘蔗渣复合材料研究进展

甘蔗渣是一种可再生的生物资源,将其与聚合物共混制备木塑复合材料则是当代甘蔗渣高值化利用的发展方向之一。系统地介绍了甘蔗渣的预处理技术、加工温度和甘蔗渣加入量等因素对聚合物／甘蔗渣复合材料性能的影响。在制备复合材料的过程中除了要注重甘蔗渣的加入量和预处理方法外,还要着重选择良好的相容剂和不同的改性方法,才能改善甘蔗渣与聚合物的相容性,充分展现甘蔗渣在木塑复合材料中的优势。     

表面改性蔗渣纤维/PVC复合材料力学性能的研究

采用不同表面改性剂(氨基硅烷偶联剂、马来酸酐、苯甲酸和聚乙二醇表面活性剂)对蔗渣纤维(BF)进行处理,研究了表面改性剂的种类及表面改性剂的复配(硅烷偶联剂和苯甲酸复配)对BFP/VC复合体系力学性能的影响规律,探讨了改性剂的作用机理。结果表明,表面改性剂的处理使BFP/VC复合体系的力学性能有不同程度的改善。同时以扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对复合材料冲击断面进行了观察,发现改性BFP/VC的相容性得到了有效改善。