Advancement of lignin into bioactive compounds through selective organic synthesis methods.

The conversion of lignin into bioactive compounds through selective organic synthesis methods represents a promising frontier in the pursuit of sustainable raw materials and green chemistry. This review explores the versatility of lignin-derived bioactive compounds, ranging from their application in drug discovery to their role in the development of biodegradable materials. Despite notable advancements, the synthesis routes and yields of highly bioactive molecules from lignin still require further exploration and improvement. This review provides an in-depth examination of the progress made in understanding the complex structure of lignin and developing innovative approaches to exploit its potential. Specifically, the types of lignins covered include softwood Kraft lignin, hardwood organosolv lignin, and soda lignin. This work is divided into three parts: first, the transformation of lignin into bioactive molecules with chemically active centres and functionalised hydroxyl groups through depolymerisation; second, kinetic modelling techniques essential for understanding the chemical kinetics of lignin and enabling significant scaling up in the conversion of organic molecules; third, efficient catalytic pathways for synthesising molecules with anticancer and antibacterial properties. In conclusion, this comprehensive review spurs further investigations into lignin-derived bioactive compounds, their applications, and the advancement of sustainable processes.

Curcumin loaded waste biomass resourced cellulosic nanofiber cloth as a potential scaffold for regenerative medicine: An in-vitro assessment.

This article demonstrates the development of nanofibrous cloths by electrospinning of renewable materials, i.e., curcumin-loaded 90% cellulose acetate (CA)/10% poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), for applications in regenerative medicine. The CA is derived from the biomass waste of the oil palm plantation (empty fruit bunch). The nanofiber scaffolds are characterized for the fiber morphology, microstructure, thermal properties, and wettability. The optimized smooth and bead-free electrospun fiber cloth contains 90% CA and 10% PCL in two curcumin compositions (0.5 and 1 wt%). The role of curcumin is shown to be two-fold: the first is its function as a drug and the second is its role in lowering the water contact angle and increasing the hydrophilicity. The hydrophilicity enhancements are related to the hydrogen bonding between the components. The enhanced hydrophilicity contributed to improve the swelling behavior of the scaffolds; the CA/PCL/Cur (0.5%) and the CA/PCL/Cur (1.0%) showed swelling of ~700 and 950%, respectively, in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). The drug-release studies revealed the highest cumulative drug release of 60% and 78% for CA/PCL/Cur (0.5%) and CA/PCL/Cur (1.0%) nanofibers, respectively. The in-vitro studies showed that CA/PCL/Cur (0.5 wt%) and CA/PCL/Cur (1.0 wt%) nanofiber scaffolds facilitate a higher proliferation and expression of actin in fibroblasts than those scaffolds without curcumin for wound healing applications.

Production of Rigid Polyurethane Foams Using Polyol from Liquefied Oil Palm Biomass: Variation of Isocyanate Indexes.

Development of polyurethane foam (PUF) containing bio-based components is a complex process that requires extensive studies. This work reports on the production of rigid PUFs from polyol obtained via liquefaction of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) biomass with different isocyanate (NCO) indexes. The effect of the NCO index on the physical, chemical and compressive properties of the liquefied EFB-based PUF (EFBPUF) was evaluated. The EFBPUFs showed a unique set of properties at each NCO index. Foaming properties had affected the apparent density and cellular morphology of the EFBPUFs. Increasing NCO index had increased the crosslink density and dimensional stability of the EFBPUFs via formation of isocyanurates, which had also increased their thermal stability. Combination of both foaming properties and crosslink density of the EFBPUFs had influenced their respective compressive properties. The EFBPUF produced at the NCO index of 120 showed the optimum compressive strength and released the least toxic hydrogen cyanide (HCN) gas under thermal degradation. The normalized compressive strength of the EFBPUF at the NCO index of 120 is also comparable with the strength of the PUF produced using petrochemical polyol.