• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.121-133
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• 2014

Block copolymers including ABA triblock architectures are useful as thermoplastic elastomers and toughened plastics depending on the relative glassy and rubbery content. These materials can be blended with other polymers and utilized as additives, toughening agents, and compatibilizers. Most of commercially available block copolymers are derived from petroleum. Renewable alternatives are attractive considering the finite supply of fossil resources on earth and the overall economic and environmental expenses involved in the recovery and use of oil. Furthermore, tomorrow's sustainable materials are demanding the design and implementation with programmed end-of-life. The present review focuses on the preparation and evaluation of new classes of renewable ABA triblock copolymers and also emphasizes on the use of carbohydrate-derived poly(lactide) or plant-based poly(olefins) having a high glass transition temperature and/or high melting temperature for the hard phase in addition to the use of bio-based amorphous hydrocarbon polymers with a low glass transition temperature for the soft components. The combination of multiple controlled polymerizations has proven to be a powerful approach. Precision-controlled synthesis of these hybrid macromolecules has led to the development of new elastomers and tough plastics offering renewability, biodegradability, and high performance.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.97-105
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• 2009

Seed storage lipids of plants, essential for seed germination as energy supplier, have been used for humankind and animal as nutrition sources. Fatty acids of vegetable oils have the characters appropriate for industry based on their chain length, the position and the number of double bonds. So they are used as raw materials for lubricants, cosmetics, soaps, paints and plastics or as energy source such as bio-diesel. However, there is a limit that applies vegetable oils from typical oil crops for industrial uses, mainly because of the mixture of five common fatty acids. Therefore, identification of unusual fatty acids for industrial uses from diverse plant resources and metabolic engineering to produce unusual fatty acids have been carried out in Arabidopsis as a model for the study of oilseed biology. Here, we discuss the unusual fatty acids for industrial uses, the genes synthesizing them in lipid metabolism, and the current limits in production of transgenic plants accumulating unusual fatty acid in their seeds. In addition, we describe our work on metabolic engineering of Brassica napus for the production of the unusual fatty acid ricinoleic acid in the seed, because of its industrial uses.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.820-824
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• 2022

Ecologically sustainable means of development is the point to support environmental homeostasis. One of our roles is to find bio-degradable resources that can be substituted for petroleum-based products to effectively abide by the natural viability. To counter the issues of deforestation and preserve biodiversity, it is necessary to produce a non-wood crop that can fulfill the requirement for raw material from which several products can be produced. Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus), a member of the family Malvaceae, is showing sufficient potentiality along this road-map. Due to its rich fiber content, it has been used extensively in various fields for long, probably as early as 4,000 BC. At present, kenaf has been used as provider of paper, plastics, fiber glass, biofuel, activated carbon and epoxy composite. This obviously catch one's attention towards its capability to replace petroleum-based products as a whole. Moreover, the plant shows considerable relevance in decreasing pollutants by virtue of its enormous absorption capacity. These multiple applications of kenaf justify its credibility to be the best resource for the better world. The paper presents an overview on its numerous uses reported in the literature that we have investigated and its great potential as a valuable multipurpose crop.

• Proceedings of the Polymer Society of Korea Conference
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• 2006.10a
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• pp.357-357
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• 2006

Many industrial sources of proteins can be used as raw materials to produce films, molded materials, and various hollow items either by "casting" techniques or by "thermoplastic processing". Combining proteins with natural fibbers, paper or biodegradable polyesters is very promising to form biodegradable composites witch take advantage of the barrier and mechanical properties of each component. Using nano-fillers to form nanocomposites has also been shown to be interesting to improve properties. Production, with low transformation cost, of protein based materials to form biodegradable materials with controlled functional properties for food uses, medical uses, packaging, agriculture, controlled release systems, etc. is discussed.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.134-141
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• 2014

As the concerns about environmental problems, climate change and limited fossil resources increase, bio-based production of chemicals and polymers from renewable resources gains much attention as one of the promising solutions to deal with these problems. To solve these problems, much effort has been devoted to the development of sustainable process using renewable resources. Recently, many chemicals and polymers have been synthesized by biorefinery process and these bio-based chemicals and plastics have been suggested as strong candidates to substitute petroleum-based products. In this review, we discuss current advances on the development of metabolically engineered microorganisms for the efficient production of bio-based chemicals and polymers.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.3351-3356
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• 2014

Recently, Importance of studying based on biomass materials have increased due to the concern about plastic waste problems. Cellulose acetate butyrate (CAB) is a potential alternative to petroleum-based plastics because of its biodegradable property. Poly(ethylene-co-isosorbide terephthalate) (PEIT) is bio-based plastic, produced by isosorbide monomer. In this study, CAB/PEIT blends were prepared by solution blending to improve thermal stability of CAB. CAB and PEIT were dissolved in chloroform, and then precipitated in ethanol. To evaluate the compatibility of CAB/PEIT blends, the morphology and glass transition behaviors were analyzed by FE-SEM and DMA, respectively. TGA results revealed the improved thermal stabilities of the PEIT-rich and 50:50 compositions. No new or changed crystal structures were observed in the XRD result. Finally, CAB/PEIT solution blends showed good compatibility in overall compositions.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.23-34
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• 2006

The production of various commodity chemicals including fine chemicals, pharmaceuticals, bulk chemicals, plastics, and fuels is based on fossil resources such as petroleum. However, the limited reserves and ever-increasing demand of petroleum lead to the rapid elevation of its price. In addition, the traditional chemical processes using petroleum as a raw material have been imposing a serious environmental burden to our planet including global warming. These problems can be alleviated substantially by employing biological raw materials and bioconversion processes. Industrial biotechnology is expected to significantly complement or replace the current petroleum-based industry and to play an important role in bringing about so-called 'bio-based society'.

• Composites Research
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.232-241
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• 2022

Plasticizers are chemical additives added to polymers to have a desirable effect on mechanical properties such as processability and ductility. In this paper, we explore the use and market of eco-friendly plasticizers that can replace phthalate-based plasticizers that have been traditionally used in the plastics market. Bio plasticizers are derived primarily from biomass sources, including agricultural products, by-products and wastes. Regardless of the source of biomass, an ideal eco-friendly plasticizer should be non-toxic, have high resistance to volatilization, extraction, and migration, have good compatibility and compatibility, and be economical. The global bio plasticizer market is expected to reach USD 2.1 billion by 2030 from USD 1.3 billion in 2020, growing at a CAGR of 5.31% from 2021 to 2030.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 2015

Sustainable and eco-friendly polymers, natural polymers, bio-based polymers, and degradable polyesters, are of growing interest because of environmental concerns associated with waste plastics and emissions of carbon dioxide from preparation of petroleum-based polymers. Degradable polymers, poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT), poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC), and poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA), are related to reduction of carbon dioxide in processing. To improve a weak mechanical property of a degradable polymer, a blending method is widely used. This study was forced on the component separation of degradable polymer blends for effective recycling. The melt-mixed blend films in a specific solvent were separated by two layers. Each layer was analysed by FT-IR, DSC, and contact angle measurements. The results showed that each component in the PPC/PLLA and PPC/PBAT blends was successfully separated by a solvent.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.136-151
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• 2021

Biomass lignin, a waste produced during the paper and bio-ethanol production process, is a cheap material that is available in large quantities. Thus, the interest in the valorization of biomass lignin has been increasing in industrial and academic areas. Over the years, lignin has been predominantly burnt as fuel to run pulping plants. However, less than 2% of the available lignin has been utilized for producing specialty chemicals, such as dispersants, adhesives, surfactants, and other value-added products. The development of value-added lignin-derived co-products should help make second generation biorefineries and the paper industry more profitable by valorizing lignin. Another possible approach towards value-added applications is using lignin as a component in plastics. However, blending lignin with polymers is not simple because the polarity of lignin molecules results in strong self-interactions. Therefore, achieving in-depth insights on lignin characteristics and structure will help in accelerating the development of lignin-based products. Considering the multipurpose characteristics of lignin for producing value-added products, this review will shed light on the potential applications of lignin and lignin-based derivatives on polymeric composite production. Moreover, the challenges in lignin valorization will be addressed.