Realising Functional Cellulosic Bio-based Composites

世界范围内正在从使用石油为基础的塑料原料向更可持续的塑料原料过渡。这种转变是由于石油库存的减少，以及人们意识到目前这种资源的使用水平不再可持续。更可持续的材料使用来源是来自植物的纤维素。这种材料是一种用途非常广泛的聚合物，实际上是世界上使用最多的材料。在过去的20多年里，我一直在研究纤维素的结构-性质关系，我处于理想的地位，可以在向可再生材料的过渡中发挥关键作用。大自然很好地利用了纤维素。纤维本身的坚韧和坚硬意味着，按重量计算，纤维素纤维可以与大多数合成替代品(如玻璃)机械竞争。在自然界中，最普遍的天然复合材料-木材-纤维素构成了其出色的结构性能的基础。我们所有复制木材和植物综合性能的尝试都失败了，这一奖学金旨在解决这些问题，同时也利用植物纤维和木材本身的固有特性。拟议的研究旨在在天然材料和合成材料的背景下做到这一点，为复合材料增加功能，同时也从横向意义上解决拟议材料和结构的可持续性证书。

The worldwide transition from the use of oil-based to more sustainable feedstocks for plastics is underway. This transition is due to dwindling oil stocks and a realisation that current levels of the use of this resource is no longer sustainable. More sustainable sources for materials use exist in the form of cellulose from plants. This material is a very versatile polymer and is in fact the most utilised material worldwide. For the last 20+ years I have been researching the structure-property relationships of cellulose and am ideally placed to play a key role in the transition to renewable materials. Nature makes use of cellulose to good effect. Being intrinsically strong and stiff means that cellulose fibres, per weight, can compete mechanically with most synthetic alternatives such as glass. In nature's most prevalent natural composite - wood - cellulose forms the basis of its outstanding structural performance. All our attempts to replicate the composite performance of wood and plants have fallen short, and this fellowship seeks to address these issues, while also using the intrinsic properties of plant fibres and wood themselves. The proposed research aims to do this in the context of both natural and synthetic materials, adding functionality to the composites, while also addressing in a cross-cutting sense the sustainability credentials of the materials and structures proposed.