The patented work of Dr. Donald H. White

Nano-Cellulosic Materials

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Dr. White holds (above) in hand four vials of isolated nano-cellulose in deionized water. After the reconstitution, Dr. White conducts a check (right) with a 647nm red laser to observe if the suspension of nano-cellulose is a true colloid. This scattering of light is known as the Tyndell- Effect.

 
 
 
 

Surface techniques were implored in the Fairbrother lab at Johns Hopkins University to assess the presence of nano-cellulose. The study was conducted to ensure that the bacteria in the bioreactor were in fact breaking down the synthetic plastics and not the nano-cellulose (Nano-cellulose is a plant sugar that is biodegradable).

 

A triple blind study was conducted at Tuskegee, Johns Hopkins, and Wisconsin Universities to asses the dispersion and biodegradability of nano-cellulosic composites. The data suggests a complete dispersion and encapsulation of the nano-cellulose within the composites fabricated at Tuskegee (image labeled “d” shows no cellulose protruding from the surface in the chemical mapping done on the nano-composites). Those same composites, when introduced as the only food source for bacteria in a closed environment, produced biogas.

 
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