Abstract
In this paper, we developed a microbial route to fabricate wood-inspired biomimetic composites comparable to natural wood. Focusing on the chemical composition of woody biomass, we performed in situ bioprocessing of bacterial cellulose (BC) imbibed in modified cationic lignin (Catlig), which exhibited significant bioactivity in improving the microbial growth dynamics. The structural and morphological characteristics were enhanced by the formation of hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions between BC and Catlig during biosynthesis. Microbially derived BC/Catlig composites exhibited enhanced thermal stability and crystallinity, with oriented cellulose fibers. The tensile properties, toughness, and specific strength of BC/Catlig composites were comparable to those of a heavy wood species (Zelkova serrata) under hydrated conditions and synthetic soft materials.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to humbly thank the Japan Society of the Promotion of Science (JSPS) for project funding in support of the research work through Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (KAKENHI) No. 18F18090 to P.D. We also acknowledge JSPS for their financial support of this project, in part through Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A) No. 20H00433 to H.K.
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Dhar, P., Sugimura, K., Yoshioka, M. et al. Fabrication of wood-inspired high-performance composites through fermentation routes. Cellulose 29, 2927–2947 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-021-04354-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-021-04354-z