Nature Inspired Lignocellulosic Matrices for Tunable Sorption and Release- from Sustainable Agriculture to Environment Remediation

Being major components of woody and non-woody plants, lignocellulosic have recently found enormous applications in a variety of fields ranging from biofuels and filtration to battery materials. We present an innovative approach to fabricate bioinspired lignocellulosic materials with tunable sorption and release profiles. We have prepared lignin-cellulose hybrid nanofibers and particles via respective electrospinning and anti-solvent precipitation of mixtures containing biodegradable cellulose and alkali lignin. We find an interesting correlation between the precursor mixture composition and the fiber/particle physical properties. When the sorption and release profile of these matrices is investigated, the composition of the matrix seems to monitor its capacity and kinetics to sorb and release various types of molecules. In particular, we have examined the scope of these matrices as sorbents for industrial contaminants using model molecules, while the efficacy of these matrices as sustained-release media for agrochemicals is analyzed by using model agrochemicals. We believe that by manipulating the composition of the matrices, we can fine-tune their sorption and release profiles, while flexibility in fabricating these matrices in different physical forms further enhance the scope of our approach to be applied in diverse applications.