Cellulose, a linear polymer of glucopyranose sugar molecules, is synthesized both by plants and bacteria. The plant-produced cellulose is present along with other compounds such as hemicelluloses and lignin, and has been used historically for a wide variety of applications ranging from paper-making to cosmetics. The cellulose produced by bacteria, on the other hand, is pure and difficult to mak...

Using liquid crystalline self-assembly of cellulose nanocrystals, we achieve long-range alignment of anisotropic metal nanoparticles in colloidal nanocrystal dispersions that are then used to deposit thin structured films with ordering features highly dependent on the deposition method. These hybrid films are comprised of gold nanorods unidirectionally aligned in a matrix that can be made of or...

This work demonstrates the preparation of spherical nanocellulose from microcrystalline cellulose by controlled hydrolysis using anaerobic microbial consortium. The nanocellulose formed during the degradation of microcrystalline cellulose was separated by ultra filtration membrane and purified by differential centrifugation. The purified nanocellulose was characterized by nanoparticle size anal...

The right-handed twist along aqueous dispersed cellulose nanocrystals allows right-handed chiral plasmonics upon electrostatic binding of gold nanoparticles in dilute environment, through tuning the particle sizes and concentrations. Simulations using nanoparticle coordinates from cryo-electron tomography confirm the experimental results. The finding suggests generalization for other chiral and...

Developing sustainable chemical methods to synthesize silver nanoparticles has drawn significant research interest. Due to their unique and well-defined physical-chemical properties, cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) have become one of the most promising renewable nanomaterials. Here we use CNC to mediate silver nanoparticle synthesis and elucidate the effect of CNC surface chemistry (as defined by...

Enzyme catalyzed conversion of plant biomass to sugars is an inherently inefficient process, and one of the major factors limiting economical biofuel production. This is due to the physical barrier presented by polymers in plant cell walls, including semi-crystalline cellulose, to soluble enzyme accessibility. In contrast to the enzymes currently used in industry, bacterial cellulosomes organiz...

Bacterial cellulose was produced by Acetobacter xylinum (strain TISTR 975). Bacterial cellulose is an interesting material for using as a wound dressing since it provides moist environment to a wound resulting in a better wound healing. However, bacterial cellulose itself has no antimicrobial activity to prevent wound infection. To achieve antimicrobial activity, silver nanoparticles were impre...

Nanoparticle incorporated membranes are potential tools to remove hazardous organic pollutants from drinking water sources. Cellulose acetate were impregnated by incorporating zinc nanoparticles, produced using a green synthesis with Mentha plant extract utilizing microwave energy. The synthesized nanoparticles extensively characterized ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Scann...