US-Egypt Cooperative Research: Preparation and Evaluation of New Environmentally Friendly "Lignocellulosic Composites" from Waste Agricultural Products.

0001600GobranDescription：该奖项旨在支持由宾夕法尼亚州费城德雷克塞尔大学材料工程系Riad Gobran博士和埃及开罗国家研究中心纤维素和造纸系Altaf H.Basta博士合作开展的项目。他们计划研究如何利用现成的废弃农产品，如甘蔗渣、稻草和棉杆，作为非木材木质纤维原料。这些化合物将与现成的无机化合物结合使用，形成新的环境友好型复合材料。将通过改变无机化合物的类型和用量来检测和优化其机械、电气、生物和阻燃性能。将对拟议系统的经济性进行研究，并将使用这些系统与传统系统的制造成本进行比较。范围：美国PI和埃及合作者在与该项目直接相关的领域拥有良好的研究和经验记录，即纤维素、木质素和木质纤维素材料的化学和技术及其在造纸业、复合木和纤维素衍生品中的应用。这两位调查人员相互补充。巴斯塔博士将对木质纤维原料进行前处理，并准备用作传统树脂替代品的新添加剂。Gobran博士将为复合材料的评估进行免费的实验工作，特别是在各种条件下的韧性测量和抗冲击性。他将使用电子扫描显微镜对复合材料的形态进行研究。两人将交换样本以检验结果的重复性，并将参与数据和结论的分析。这一建议符合INT支持在共同感兴趣的领域进行合作研究的目标。该项目得到了美国-埃及联合基金计划的支持，该计划为两国的科学家和工程师提供资助，以开展这些合作活动。

0001600GobranDescription: This award is to support a collaborative project by Dr. Riad Gobran, Materials Engineering Department, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Dr. Altaf H. Basta, Cellulose and Paper Department, the National Research Center, Cairo, Egypt. They plan to study the use of readily available waste agricultural products such as bagasse, rice straw and cotton stalks as non-wood lignocellulosic sources. These would be used in combination with readily available inorganic compounds to form new and environmentally friendly composites. The mechanical, electrical, biological and flame retardant properties will be examined and optimized by varying the type and amount of inorganic compounds used. Studies will be made of the economics of the proposed systems and comparison will be made between the cost of manufacturing using these systems against conventional systems.Scope: The US PI and the Egyptian collaborator have strong records of research and experience in areas directly related to this project, namely the chemistry and technology of cellulose, lignin, and lignocellulosic materials and their applications in paper industries, composite wood, as well as in cellulose derivatives. The two investigators complement each other. Dr. Basta will carry out pretreatment of lignocellulosic raw materials and preparation of new additives to be used as replacement of conventional resins. Dr. Gobran will carry out complimentary experimental work for the evaluation of composites, especially toughness measurements and impact resistance under various conditions. He will conduct studies of the morphology of the composites using electron-scanning microscopy. The two will exchange samples for testing of repeatability of results, and will participate in the analysis of data and conclusions. This proposal meets the INT objective of supporting collaborative research in areas of mutual interest. This project is being supported under the US-Egypt Joint Fund Program, which provides grants to scientists and engineers in both countries to carry out these cooperative activities.