A cellulose derivative, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), was synthesized by the reaction of cellulose from kenaf bast fiber with monochloroacetic acid. A series of biopolymer electrolytes comprised of the synthesized CMC and ammonium acetate (CH₃COONH₄) were prepared by the solution-casting technique. The biopolymer-based electrolyte films were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy to investigate the formation of the CMC–CH₃COONH₄ complexes. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was conducted to obtain their ionic conductivities. The highest conductivity at ambient temperature of 5.77 × 10⁻⁴ S cm⁻¹ was obtained for the electrolyte film containing 20 wt% of CH₃COONH₄. The biopolymer electrolyte film also exhibited electrochemical stability up to 2.5 V. These results indicated that the biopolymer electrolyte has great potential for applications to electrochemical devices, such as proton batteries and solar cells.

Over the past three decades, chemical and biological water contamination has become a major concern, particularly in the industrialized world. Heavy metals, aromatic compounds, and dyes are among the harmful substances that contribute to water pollution, which jeopardies the human health. For this reason, it is of the utmost importance to locate methods for the cleanup of wastewater that are not genuinely effective. Owing to its non-toxicity, biodegradability, and biocompatibility, starch is a naturally occurring polysaccharide that scientists are looking into as a possible environmentally friendly material for sustainable water remediation. Starch could exhibit significant adsorption capabilities towards pollutants with the substitution of amide, amino, carboxyl, and other functional groups for hydroxyl groups. Starch derivatives may effectively remove contaminants such as oil, organic solvents, pesticides, heavy metals, dyes, and pharmaceutical pollutants by employing adsorption techniques at a rate greater than 90%. The maximal adsorption capacities of starch-based adsorbents for oil and organic solvents, pesticides, heavy metal ions, dyes, and pharmaceuticals are 13,000, 66, 2000, 25,000, and 782 mg/g, respectively. Although starch-based adsorbents have demonstrated a promising future for environmental wastewater treatment, additional research is required to optimize the technique before the starch-based adsorbent can be used in large-scale in situ wastewater treatment.

It has been shown that in the last decades nanotechnology plays a key role not only in science but more and more often in industry as well. Recent research has shown that agricultural waste is a possible feedstock to produce nanocellulose which can be used for different applications, such as a biosensor, semiconductor and reinforcing agent. The use of agro-waste as a precursor not only offers advantages for raw material costs, but also for the climate, low processing costs, availability and convenience. It also helps to address environmental issues, such as illness, foul odor and concerns with indoor use. Different processes, such as chemical treatment, mechanical treatment and chemo-mechanical treatment, have been used to extract nanocellulose from agro-waste. This article highlights the latest technologies used to acquire agro-waste nanocellulose, as well as existing advances in and applications of nanocellulose technologies.