As a traditional medicinal herb and valuable natural spice in China, Aquilaria sinensis (Lour.) Gilg has many significant pharmacological effects. Agarwood is the resinous heartwood acquired from wounded A. sinensis trees, and is widely used in pharmaceuticals owing to its excellent medicinal value. In this study, the chemical composition of volatile components and alcohol extracts from different organs of A. sinensis and agarwoods grown in different regions were investigated using GC-MS. The results showed that Vietnam agarwood had the highest moisture content, which was attributed to the local climate, while the fruit and bark of A. sinensis had higher moisture contents than the other organs. The volatile components of A. sinensis organs included 3-ethyl-5-(2-ethylbutyl)-octadecane, oleic acid 3-(octadecyloxy) propyl ester, and docosanoic acid 1,2,3-propanetriyl ester, while the alcohol extracts of A. sinensis organs contained benzoic acid ethyl ester, hexadecanoic acid ethyl ester, oleic acid, and n-hexadecanoic acid. Furthermore, the main active ingredients in agarwood from different habitats were sesquiterpenoids, aromatic species, and chromone compounds. The role of chromone compound 2-phenylethyl-benzopyran as an elicitor and the mechanism of agarwood formation were also investigated. Antioxidant tests showed that essential oils from agarwood and A. sinensis had antioxidant capacities by comparison with butylated hydroxytoluene and vitamin E. An antibacterial activity test showed that the inhibition effect of the essential oil was better against Gram-positive bacteria than against Gram-negative bacteria.

A novel lignin-based quaternary ammonium material (lignin-DMC) with excellent corrosion resistant behavior was synthesized by grafting DMC (methacrylatoethyl trimethyl ammonium chloride) onto kraft lignin. The structure and anti-corrosion performance of lignin-DMC was investigated using many methods, for instance the scanning electron microscope (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), charge density analysis, molecular weight analysis, electrochemical methods. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the formation of the lignin-DMC. The experiment results indicated that maximum corrosion inhibition efficiency (87.65%) occurred at a concentration of 75 mg/L via weight loss measurement. Polarization curves indicated that lignin-DMC was a mixed-type inhibitor with an efficient anti-corrosion performance in an acid medium. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results indicated that lignin-DMC could create a shielding effectiveness and achieve a protective effectiveness in the HCl solution. Moreover, lignin-DMC displayed a physical and chemical adsorption process between 20 KJ/mol and 40 KJ/mol, which followed the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model.