Department of Chemistry, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey, Camden, NJ 08102, USA.
Center for Integrative and Computational Biology, Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey, Camden, NJ 08102, USA.
Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Nov 8;19(11):3518. doi: 10.3390/ijms19113518.
Lignin's immiscibility with most polymers along with its unknown association behaviors are major factors that contribute to its disposal and processability for the production of materials. To fully utilize lignin, an improved understanding of its interaction with other materials is needed. In this study, we investigate the morphological and physicochemical properties upon the addition of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) as a function of material composition in a tertiary system comprised of lignin, cellulose and xylan. The main motivation for this work is to understand how the lignin molecule associates and behaves in the presence of other natural macromolecules, as well as with the addition of reduced graphene oxide. The fabricated biocomposites with and without rGO were investigated using Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) techniques, Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The results demonstrated that the regenerated films' structural, morphological and thermal character changed as a function of lignin-xylan concentration and upon the addition of rGO. We also observed a dramatic change in the glass transition temperature and topography. Final analysis showed that the addition of rGO prevented the macromolecules to self-assemble through a reduction of π-π aggregations and changes in the cellulose crystallinity.
木质素与大多数聚合物的不混溶性以及其未知的结合行为是导致其难以处理和加工以用于材料生产的主要因素。为了充分利用木质素，需要更好地了解其与其他材料的相互作用。在这项研究中，我们研究了在木质素、纤维素和木聚糖的三元体系中添加还原氧化石墨烯（rGO）作为材料组成函数时的形态和物理化学性质。这项工作的主要动机是了解木质素分子在存在其他天然大分子以及添加还原氧化石墨烯时如何结合和表现。使用衰减全反射傅里叶变换红外光谱（ATR-FTIR）、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）技术、热重分析（TGA）和差示扫描量热法（DSC）研究了具有和不具有 rGO 的生物复合材料。结果表明，再生膜的结构、形态和热特性随着木质素-木聚糖浓度的变化以及 rGO 的添加而变化。我们还观察到玻璃化转变温度和形貌的剧烈变化。最终分析表明，添加 rGO 通过减少π-π聚集和纤维素结晶度的变化来阻止大分子自组装。
