Nanotechnology and Functional Materials, Department of Engineering Sciences, The Ångström Laboratory , Uppsala University , Box 534, Uppsala 751 21 , Sweden.
Department of Chemistry-Ångström , Uppsala University , Box 538, Uppsala 751 21 , Sweden.
Acc Chem Res. 2019 Aug 20;52(8):2232-2243. doi: 10.1021/acs.accounts.9b00215. Epub 2019 Jul 10.
Because of its natural abundance, hierarchical fibrous structure, mechanical flexibility, potential for chemical modification, biocompatibility, renewability, and abundance, cellulose is one of the most promising green materials for a bio-based future and sustainable economy. Cellulose derived from wood or bacteria has dominated the industrial cellulose market and has been developed to produce a number of advanced materials for applications in energy storage, environmental, and biotechnology areas. However, cellulose (CC) extracted from green algae has unprecedented advantages over those celluloses because of its high crystallinity (>95%), low moisture adsorption capacity, excellent solution processability, high porosity in the mesoporous range, and associated high specific surface area. The unique physical and chemical properties of CC can add new features to and enhance the performance of nanocellulose-based materials, and these attributes have attracted a great deal of research interest over the past decade. This Account summarizes our recent research on the preparation, characterization, functionalization, and versatile applications of CC. Our aim is to provide a comprehensive overview of the uniqueness of CC with respect to material structure, properties, and emerging applications. We discuss the potential of CC in energy storage, environmental science, and life science, with emphasis on applications in which its properties are superior to those of other nanocellulose forms. Specifically, we discuss the production of the first-ever paper battery based on CC. This battery has initiated a rising interest in the development of sustainable paper-based energy storage devices, where cellulose is used as a combined building block and binder for paper electrodes of various types in combination with carbon, conducting polymers, and other electroactive materials. High-active-mass and high-mass-loading paper electrodes can be made in which the CC acts as a high-surface-area and porous substrate while a thin layer of electroactive material is coated on individual nanofibrils. We have shown that CC membranes can be used directly as battery separators because of their low moisture content, high mesoporosity, high thermal stability, and good electrolyte wettability. The safety, stability, and capacity of lithium-ion batteries can be enhanced simply by using CC-based separators. Moreover, the high chemical modifiability and adjustable porosity of dried CC papers allow them to be used as advanced membranes for environmental science (water and air purification, pollutant adsorption) and life science (virus isolation, protein recovery, hemodialysis, DNA extraction, bioactive substrates). Finally, we outline some concluding perspectives on the challenges and future directions of CC research with the aim to open up yet unexplored fields of use for this interesting material.
由于其丰富的天然资源、分层纤维结构、机械柔韧性、化学修饰潜力、生物相容性、可再生性和丰富性，纤维素是最有前途的绿色材料之一，可用于生物基未来和可持续经济。源自木材或细菌的纤维素主导着工业纤维素市场，并已开发出多种先进材料，用于储能、环境和生物技术领域。然而，与其他纤维素相比，从绿藻中提取的纤维素（CC）具有前所未有的优势，因为其结晶度高（>95%）、吸湿性低、优良的溶液加工性能、中孔范围内的高孔隙率以及相关的高比表面积。CC 的独特物理和化学性质可为纳米纤维素基材料增添新的功能并提高其性能，这些特性在过去十年中引起了广泛的研究兴趣。本账户总结了我们最近在 CC 的制备、表征、功能化和多功能应用方面的研究。我们的目的是提供 CC 的材料结构、性能和新兴应用方面的独特性的全面概述。我们讨论了 CC 在储能、环境科学和生命科学中的潜力，重点介绍了其性能优于其他纳米纤维素形式的应用。具体来说，我们讨论了基于 CC 的首个纸质电池的生产。该电池引发了人们对开发可持续纸质储能器件的兴趣，其中纤维素被用作各种类型的碳、导电聚合物和其他电活性材料的纸电极的组合构建块和粘合剂。可以制造高活性质量和高质量负载的纸电极，其中 CC 作为高表面积和多孔基质，而薄薄的一层电活性材料涂覆在各个纳米原纤维上。我们已经表明，由于 CC 膜的低含水量、高中孔率、高热稳定性和良好的电解质润湿性，它们可以直接用作电池隔板。使用基于 CC 的隔板可以增强锂离子电池的安全性、稳定性和容量。此外，干燥 CC 纸的高化学可修饰性和可调节的孔隙率允许它们被用作环境科学（水和空气净化、污染物吸附）和生命科学（病毒隔离、蛋白质回收、血液透析、DNA 提取、生物活性基质）的先进膜。最后，我们概述了 CC 研究的一些结论性观点，旨在为这种有趣的材料开辟尚未探索的应用领域。
