In this study, mechanical fibrillation for the production of cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) from chemical and mechanical pulps with different chemical compositions was studied. To investigate the effect of nanofibrillation on wood pulps by the grinder, the nanofibrils obtained from grinded pulp were characterized with morphology, particle size distribution, apparent viscosity in aqueous solution, degree of crystallinity, and water retention capacity. The results showed that the low lignin-containing unbleached kraft pulp (UKP) exhibited good performance for fibrillation, resulting in CNF with high viscosity, high water retention value, and small particle size. However, the fibrillation of high lignin-containing chemi-thermomechanical pulp was the most inefficient which resulted in heterogeneous materials with relatively low viscosity, low water retention value, and large particle size compared to chemical pulps. Furthermore, bleached softwood pulp from radiata pine was found to be much faster and for easier fibrillation compared to the bleached hardwood pulp from acacia due to the more rigid structure of hardwood fibers.

Combining multiple metal elements into one nanostructure merits untold application potential but is still a challenge for the traditional bottom-up synthesis method. Herein, we propose a eutectic-directed self-templating strategy to prepare two multi-component nanostructured alloys (PtPdRhIrNi (D-SN) and NiPtPdRhIrAl (D-SS)) through the combination of rapid solidification with dealloying. The PtPdRhIrNi nanoporous nanowires (NPNWs) represent a new family of high-entropy alloys (HEAs) containing delicate hierarchical nanostructure with ultrafine ligament sizes of ∼ 2 nm in addition to one-dimensional (1D) morphology. Moreover, the PtPdRhIrNi NPNWs display excellent electrocatalytic activity and stability toward hydrogen evolution reaction, with the low overpotential of 22 and 55 mV to afford a current density of 10 mA·cm⁻² in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ and 1.0 M KOH electrolytes, respectively. The enhanced electrocatalytic performance can be attributed to the high-entropy effect favoring the surface electronic structure for the optimized activity, the promotion impact of Ni, 1D morphology facilitating the electron transport, and the nanoporous structure promoting the electrolyte diffusion.

A deep eutectic solvent (DES) composed of sulfamic acid and glycerol allowed for the sustainable preparation of cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) with simultaneous sulfation. The reaction time and the levels of sulfamic acid demonstrated that fibers could be swelled and sulfated simultaneously by a sulfamic acid-glycerol-based DES and swelling also promoted sulfation with a high degree of substitution (0.12). The DES-pretreated fibers were further nanofibrillated by a grinder producing CNF with diameters from 10 nm to 25 nm. The crystallinity ranged from 53–62%, and CNF maintained the original crystal structure. DES pretreatment facilitated cellulose nano-fibrillation and reduced the energy consumption with a maximum reduction of 35%. The films prepared from polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and CNF showed good UV resistance ability and mechanical properties. This facile and efficient method provided a more sustainable strategy for the swelling, functionalization and nano-fibrillation of cellulose, expanding its application to UV-blocking materials and related fields.