A new family of materials comprised of cellulose, cellulose nanomaterials (CNMs), having properties and functionalities distinct from molecular cellulose and wood pulp, is being developed for applications that were once thought impossible for cellulosic materials. Commercialization, paralleled by research in this field, is fueled by the unique combination of characteristics, such as high on-axis stiffness, sustainability, scalability, and mechanical reinforcement of a wide variety of materials, leading to their utility across a broad spectrum of high-performance material applications. However, with this exponential growth in interest/activity, the development of measurement protocols necessary for consistent, reliable and accurate materials characterization has been outpaced. These protocols, developed in the broader research community, are critical for the advancement in understanding, process optimization, and utilization of CNMs in materials development. This review establishes detailed best practices, methods and techniques for characterizing CNM particle morphology, surface chemistry, surface charge, purity, crystallinity, rheological properties, mechanical properties, and toxicity for two distinct forms of CNMs: cellulose nanocrystals and cellulose nanofibrils.

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Epoxy thermosets have revolutionized the coating, adhesive, and composite industries but the chemicals from which they are synthesized have significant effects on the environment and human health not only precure but also after crosslinking has occurred. In this study, we propose tannic acid (TA) as an alternative epoxy hardening agent for commercially available epoxy resin, the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA). The resulting thermosets were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, optical microscopy, dynamic mechanical analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, compression testing, and thermogravimetric analysis. The results from this study showed that at temperatures above 100 °C, the compatibility of TA in DGEBA was significantly increased for loading levels up to 37% weight of TA in DGEBA, something that has not been seen before in literature. It was also discovered that at high loading levels, the resulting materials had glass transition temperatures at and above 200 °C. The resulting material was proposed as a more sustainable alternative to amine or acid hardened epoxy thermosets and was particularly useful in high‐temperature applications. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018, 56, 1468–1480