Search

Nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) is probably the most abundant nano material can be found in nature. It offers not only substantial environmental advantage due to its intrinsic biocompatibility and biodegradability, but also outstanding aspect ratio, tension modulus, bioavailability and permeability. NCC can be isolated from low value biomass through a well-developed acid hydrolysis method, and the structure can be readily manipulated during extraction to obtain desirable size distribution, surface charge and degree of crystallinity. Erratic absorption of drug has been a major issue for years until the emergence of nanoparticle adopted as smart vehicle for drug delivery. However, due to inevitably severe toxicity and the side effect from ordinary nanoparticle, the exploration of green nanoparticles are catching escalating attention is now in urge. Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) has long been an option, nevertheless, due to their relatively low surface charge compared to total volume, drug release in a control manner was hardly satisfied. It is suggested that the above limitation can be overcome by nanocrystalline cellulose. This article discusses and explores their potential in cosmetic, personal care and pharmaceutical application, and the recent development in term of preparation and characteristic.

NanoCrystalline Cellulose (NCC) was isolated via ultrasonic cavitation assisted acid hydrolysis method. Characterization was done using Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) together with Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) imaging to double prove the existence of NCC. DLS measures length of 236.6 nm with width of 34.40 nm, supported by SEM which showed NCC a rod-like shaped particle with large surface area and high porosity. It was then attempted for heavy metal cadmium ion (Cd2+) removal from aqueous solution. The pH implication to the rate of Cd2+ adsorption was investigated by varying the solution to pH 4, pH 7 and pH 10 over a duration of 120 minutes. The removal efficiency was analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) resulting in pH 7 being the most favorable for Cd2+ removal.

Response Surface Methodology (RSM) is the most popular approach for optimization study in various biochemical processes nowadays. Artificial Neural Network (ANN) has emerged as one of the most efficient methods in empirical modeling and optimization, particularly for non-linear systems. In this study, the estimation capability of RSM and ANN models was compared in copper removal from aqueous solution. The experiments were carried out based on a 3-level and 4-variable Central Composite Design (CCD). The RSM results revealed that the relationship between the response and independent variable could be represented by the quadratic polynomial model. In the development of ANN model, the optimal configuration of the model was found to be 4-10-1. Estimated responses from both models were compared with the experimentally determined responses to determine predictive capabilities of both techniques. Comparison of two methodologies showed that the ANN model was more accurate and exhibited better generalization capability than RSM, thus indicated a clear superiority than the latter in capturing the non-linear behaviour of the adsorption process using chicken eggshell as biosorbent.

The research work studied the extraction of Nano Crystalline Cellulose (NCC) from oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB), with aid of Response Surface Methodology (RSM). Particle size analysis using Malvern Zetasizer had confirmed the extracted NCC fall within the desired nano scaled range. The impact of three input parameters, namely concentration of NaOH solution during alkaline treatment, concentration of H2SO4 solution during acid hydrolysis, and duration for acid hydrolysis on NCC particle were investigated. From ANOVA study, it had suggested that the current RSM model is significant to interpret the interaction among the all three input parameters.

With the arises of environmental conscious, the usage of vertical garden system has become more popular in urban cities. Citizens can enjoys the benefits of energy and cost saving besides ornamental effect. More investigations have been conducted on green facades led to the cities ecological enhancement.However, limited plants species can be planted for green facades systems as this system does not provide sufficient soil and nutrients for common plants. Alternative plantation methods such as planted box and felt system required additional maintenance attention. The idea of using clay composite which consists of nutritious soil, water absorbing polymer and flexible cement clay potentially become alternative vertical greenery systems that offers economic and sustainable plantation platform for more variety of plants.The fabricating of clay composite involved three processes, they are: mixing, moulding and drying. Physical properties characterisation (density, pH, compression test, aging test and water immersion test) were tested on the dried fabricated clay composite to ensure their sustainability in tropical climate. The results showed that clay composite with 1.5 wt% of cement and 0.3 wt% superabsorbent polymer shows optimum water absorbing properties. This system are expected to enable more agriculture activities in urban living.