Cellulose: Fascinating Biopolymer and Sustainable Raw Material

Abstract

As the most important skeletal component in plants, the polysaccharide cellulose is an almost inexhaustible polymeric raw material with fascinating structure and properties. Formed by the repeated connection of D-glucose building blocks, the highly functionalized, linear stiff-chain homopolymer is characterized by its hydrophilicity, chirality, biodegradability, broad chemical modifying capacity, and its formation of versatile semicrystalline fiber morphologies. In view of the considerable increase in interdisciplinary cellulose research and product development over the past decade worldwide, this paper assembles the current knowledge in the structure and chemistry of cellulose, and in the development of innovative cellulose esters and ethers for coatings, films, membranes, building materials, drilling techniques, pharmaceuticals, and foodstuffs. New frontiers, including environmentally friendly cellulose fiber technologies, bacterial cellulose biomaterials, and in-vitro syntheses of cellulose are highlighted together with future aims, strategies, and perspectives of cellulose research and its applications.

The Future Prospects of Microbial Cellulose in Biomedical Applications

“…69, 70 Klemm and co-workers designed an improved patented matrix technology in order to produce a microbial cellulose tube with an i.d. of 1 mm, a length of about 5 mm, and a wall thickness of 0.7 mm.…”

“…81 Besides artificial blood vessels, molded microbial cellulose was also found to be very useful for nerve surgery, functioning as a protective cover of anastomosis. 24,70 Klemm and co-workers clinically tested a microbial cellulose tube on animals and noticed that it prevented connective tissue from growing into the nerve gap and facilitated the early regeneration of the nerve. 24,70 No inflammatory reaction was observed during these studies.…”

Aggregation and gelation in hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose aqueous solutions

“…Cellulose is a natural polysaccharide, structurally consisting of a linear homopolymer backbone formed by D-glucopyranose units linked by β1-4 glycosidic bonds [5,6]. Pure cellulose (Fig.…”

Cellulose Nanocrystals as Advanced "Green" Materials for Biological and Biomedical Engineering

“…Environmental compatibility, combined with the fact that it has little or no carbon foot print, makes cellulose a key biopolymer for the manufacture of greener and sustainable industrial materials. Currently, cellulose and its derivatives are found in medicines, cosmetics, optical films, textiles coatings, food items, packaging, and laminates (Klemm et al, 2005;. Furthermore, cellulose has the potential of becoming a foundational material for future products and processes due to the fact that cellulose has the capacity to offer various properties that conventional materials cannot provide.…”