The extensive use of petroleum-based plastics has resulted in critical energy and environmental challenges, driving the pursuit of sustainable and biodegradable bioplastics as ideal alternatives. However, the development of functional bioplastics with superior mechanical strength, water stability, and thermal stability remains a formidable challenge. Herein, inspired by the nacre, a cellulose-based bioplastic was designed with a unique layered architecture and enhanced interfacial interactions,achieved through the self-assembly of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and nano-montmorillonite, while simultaneously forming a chemically and physically double-crosslinked network under the action of TiO2 nanoparticles and citric acid. The resulting bioplastic demonstrated excellent mechanical performance, with the tensile strength reaching 106.83 MPa, representing a 220.09 % improvement over pure CMC-based bioplastic and surpassing the tensile strength of other CMC-based films. Alongside mechanical prowess, it exhibited exceptional water resistance (water absorption reduced to 42.88 %), thermal stability and UV shielding. Furthermore, it was biodegradable and environmentally benign, capable of achieving complete degradation in the soil within three months. This biomimetic strategy provided a novel approach for developing competitive cellulose-based bioplastics, offering a promising alternative to petroleum-derived plastics for everyday applications.

The increasing frequency of geotechnical disasters and climate-related land degradation underscores the need of resilient soil erosion mitigation. This study investigates the effectiveness of Cr3+-crosslinked xanthan gum (CrXG), a cation-crosslinked gelation biopolymer with time-dependent gelation and water-resistant properties, in mitigating hydraulic soil erosion. Through the erosion function apparatus test, rheological analysis, and microscopic observations, results indicate notable improvements in soil erosion resistance with CrXG treatment, elucidating distinct reinforcing mechanisms attributable to the gel state of the biopolymer hydrogel. The addition of 0.25% CrXG to the soil mass significantly improves critical shear stress and critical velocity, reducing the erodibility coefficient by four order magnitudes compared to untreated sand. Within 48 h, the transition from a viscous to rigid gel state in CrXG, driven by cation crosslinking, transforms the soil from high (II) to low (IV) erodibility class. Scour predictions using the program, based on river hydrograph conditions, indicate a substantial delay in reaching a 1-m scour depth. This study highlights CrXG-soil composite's potential as an advanced geomaterial for mitigating geohazards such as floods and stream scouring, while offering insights into its competitiveness with conventional soil stabilization techniques.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivation faces significant challenges: highland cultivation leads to soil erosion and fertility degradation, while medium-land cultivation is constrained by suboptimal temperature and humidity conditions. Processing potatoes into starch improves shelf life and economic value, however, native potato starch has limited food applications due to heat sensitivity, high viscosity, and its propensity for retrogradation and syneresis. This study investigated the effects of cultivation altitude and modification methods on the physicochemical and functional properties of potato starch from 'Medians' cultivar, comparing samples from medium-land (765 m above sea level) and highland (1312 m above sea level) locations. Starch modifications included Heat Moisture Treatment (HMT), crosslinking with Monosodium Phosphate (MSP), and a combined treatment (CLM-HMT). A factorial randomized complete block design was employed to analyze physicochemical characteristics, functional properties, and pasting behavior, with statistical significance determined using two-way ANOVA and Duncan's Multiple Range Test (p < 0.05). Results revealed significant effects of cultivation altitude, modification method, and their interaction on starch properties. Highland-grown modified starch exhibited superior characteristics in color properties and thermal stability. Modification methods improved starch thermal stability and minimized retrogradation, with the combined CLM-HMT treatment yielding optimal results. This study provides valuable insights into optimizing potato starch production and modification techniques, contributing to sustainable agriculture and broadening its applications in the food industry.

Herein, we report for the first time the incorporation of riboflavin as a bioactive additive in soy protein isolate films, along with investigating the impact of UV light treatment, thereby creating functional packaging material. Our investigation involves a comprehensive characterization of the films, including morphological, physicochemical, and mechanical properties, as well as their effectiveness as light barriers, antimicrobial potential, and biodegradation properties. The UV treatment of riboflavin/soy protein dispersions leads to the formation of films exhibiting minor water swelling and total soluble matter compared to those untreated with UV light, suggesting the development of a cross-linked network. Moreover, increased riboflavin content enhances the cross-linked network's robustness. The mechanical properties of the films exhibit a notable improvement with UV treatment and with increasing riboflavin content until a limit value, showcasing increased tensile strength and Young's modulus. Films showed homogeneous surfaces with an absence of pores and cracks and the ability to act as a barrier for oil passage. Films were assayed as a coating material for chia oil samples exposed to highintensity UV light, showing great protection capacity. It has been demonstrated that an increase in riboflavin concentration enhances the UV light-blocking properties, making these films promising candidates for storing light-sensitive food products while preserving their nutritional quality. In addition, antibacterial action against S. aureus was determined by disk diffusion assay. Furthermore, the films exhibited relatively short disintegration times under soil burial conditions, even after chemical modification. This research contributes valuable insights to the innovative field of sustainable food packaging materials.

Cellulose has gained significant attention for its abundant sources, degradability, and biocompatibility in achieving the sustainable development goals. However, the mechanical and waterproof qualities of cellulosebased polymers are typically suboptimal, thereby constraining their potential for high-value applications. Moreover, the problematic recovery of cellulose solvents is challenging for resources and the environment. The aluminum chloride/ zinc chloride/ water (AlCl3/ZnCl2/H2O) system was utilized as the cellulose dissolving solvent and the chemical crosslinking catalyst in this investigation, enabling the production of high-performance cellulose films through a one-pot approach. By opening the ring in an acidic solution with epichlorohydrin (EPI), 1, 4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDE), or polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (PEGDGE), efficient chemical crosslinking was achieved, reducing the number of reagents and optimizing the film performance in all aspects. The film tensile stress reached 197.37 MPa and elongation at break reached 33.13 %. Furthermore, after soaking in water for 180 days, the films exhibited good water stability without any evident swelling behavior. After being buried in the soil for 20 days, such films could be totally degraded. Moreover, the films could redissolve in the AlCl3/ZnCl2/H2O system without weakening mechanical properties. This safe cellulose film was a more environmentally friendly alternative to plastic packaging film. Furthermore, the AlCl3/ZnCl2/H2O system exhibited high recyclability, with salt recovery reaching 83% of the initial fresh solvent after five cycles. The excellent efficiency of the crosslinking approach and the overall greenness of the process present a novel notion for further research.

The objective of the current study was to evaluate the feasibility of Aloe vera gel as a plasticizer and crosslinker in improving the properties of starch-polyvinyl alcohol blends that could find applications in packaging. The concentration of Aloe vera gel was varied (1%, 3%, 5% and 7% wt/wt) to produce SPA-1, SPA-3, SPA-5 and SPA-7 films, respectively. The plasticizing and crosslinking characteristics associated with Aloe vera gel had a positive influence on the mechanical properties of the films. Addition of Aloe vera gel increased the tensile strength of films from 27.45 MPa (control) to 32.98, 32.53 and 32.32, for SPA-1, SPA-3 and SPA-5 films, respectively. Among all the films, highest elongation at break (20.62%) was observed for SPA-3 films. Due to crosslinking, degree of swelling, water solubility and water vapour permeability for SPA-3 films decreased by 5.58%, 38.29% and 21.44%, respectively, compared to control films. The contact angle of the SPA-3 film significantly increased by 49.25% when compared to control samples. Scanning electron microscope images revealed compact and smooth surface microstructure of control films, and crosslinking was evident in presence of Aloe vera gel. The rate of degradation for SPA-3 films in soil after 40 days was enhanced by 32.25% compared to control films. SPA-1 and SPA-3 films were tested for use as packaging material for storage of green chillies. Chillies under unpacked conditions, in control and SPA-1 films, turned red in 3 days. Those stored in films with 3% Aloe vera gel began to change colour later (after 5 days) with no visual evidence of microbial or fungal growth. In summary, starch-polyvinyl alcohol matrix films with 3% Aloe vera gel (SPA-3) were effective as a sustainable alternative in increasing shelf life of foodstuff.

In recent years, biopolymer soil treatment technology has been increasingly applied in the field of geotechnical engineering due to its environmental friendliness. While biopolymers exhibit the capacity to substantially enhance the mechanical properties of soils, their effectiveness, particularly in the case of polysaccharide-based biopolymers, is often influenced by the water, thereby restricting their practical application in engineering contexts. This study explores the potential of hydrophilic-hydrophobic biopolymer crosslinking, namely xanthan gum and casein, to enhance the strength and water stability of soils. Through a comprehensive array of assessments encompassing unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests, soaking tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses, the improvement effect, optimal conditions and microscopic mechanisms of the soil treated with hydrophilic-hydrophobic biopolymer crosslinking were investigated. The results demonstrate that compared to the sole utilization of either xanthan gum or casein, xanthan gum-casein crosslinking treatment not only significantly improves the unconfined compressive strength of the soil but also enhances its water resistance. Under optimal treatment conditions, the residual rate of unconfined compressive strength can still maintain a relatively large value after soaking for 24 h, while the soil under other conditions completely disintegrated. Moreover, the hydrophilic-hydrophobic biopolymer crosslinking transforms the gel morphology into an elongated fibrous structure that wraps and surrounds the soil particles to form a cohesive and unified entity, this synergetic interaction further enhances the efficacy of the crosslinking treatment.