Materials from Renewable Resources

Four Carbon Oxychemicals from Renewable Resources

Butanol, butyric acid and butyraldehyde are important 4-carbon oxychemicals typically generated from petro-chemical sources. All have significant markets in the food industry either for direct use as flavorings or as chemical feedstocks for generating butyric acid and butyraldehyde derived flavour compounds. Strong consumer sentiment against the consumption of petro-chemical derived products yi...

Hierarchical Composites Made Entirely from Renewable Resources

Recent interest in the utilisation of greener materials has reinitiated the interest in natural fibres and/or fibrils as reinforcement for polymers. However, such bio-based composites often exhibit properties that fall short of expectations due to (i) inadequate processing conditions, resulting in filler agglomeration and poor filler dispersion within the matrix, (ii) variations in natural fibr...

Fueling America Through Renewable Resources

Introduction Biomass energy has received much attention in recent years. We now use about one third of the U.S. corn crop for biofuels. More recently, attention has focused on cellulosic resources—dedicated energy crops like switchgrass, miscanthus, and corn stover. Now the question has been raised concerning the economics of collecting just the corn cobs for energy instead of the stover. This ...

Economics of Renewable Natural Resources

Renewable natural resources include those resources useful to human economies that exhibit growth, maintenance, and recovery from exploitation over an economic planning horizon. The economics of such resources has traditionally considered stocks of fish, forests, or freshwater, much like a banker would tally interest on cash deposits. From an economic point of view, the management of biomass, s...

Renewable Resources in Corrosion Resistance