Abstract

The first aerogels from nanosized cellulose or nanocellulose were made in 2008, i.e. 17 years ago, but they aroused great interest, the study of which is one of the fastest growing areas. Evidence of this can be seen in the annual growth in the number of publications and patents, amounting to ~25%. Nanosized cellulose has a number of unique advantages, including extraordinary mechanical strength, biocompatibility, biodegradability and inexhaustible renewable resources. Aerogels is used as a convenient matrix for obtaining various materials. Their practically important advantages are low specific gravity (0.1-0.001 g/cm³), large volume of interconnected macro/mesopores (up to 99.5%) and surface area (100-300 cm²/g). The numerous hydroxyl groups in the cellulose macromolecule and the availability of the entire volume of the aerogel matrix allow its modification – functionalization – by well-developed methods of carbohydrate chemistry, mineralization, cross-linking of (bio)polymers and their simple incorporation by absorption.

The talk begins from the fabrication of nanosized cellulose, which is still a non-trivial task. The formation of aerogels, if nanocellulose is available, is possible in almost any laboratory. Examples of a number of approaches used for the functionalization of the aerogel matrix are given. These include chemical cross-linking, mineralization by sol-gel chemistry, cross-linking of polymers and the introduction of graphene oxide and carbon nanotubes. Superelastic, superhydrophobic, electrically conductive, photocatalytic and water- and oil-absorbing aerogels, as well as adsorbents for metals and dyes, fire-resistant are considered as examples of functional materials developed in the lab.

Biography

Prof. Dr. Yury Shchipunov is a head of the Laboratory, Institute of Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok. He was graduated from the Ural State University (Ekaterinburg), continuing his studies as Ph.D. in the Institute of Electrochemistry (Moscow), the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (now Russia) under the supervision of academician Alexander Frumkin. He was also a Deputy Director of the institute in 1994-2000. Prof. Shchipunov was a visiting research professor in Bayreuth University (Germany), Nagoya University, Tokyo University in 2014-2015 and the WCU Professor of Busan National University (Korea) in 2009-2013. His interdisciplinary research interests combine colloid chemistry and chemistry of polysaccharides, concentrating mainly on bionanocomposites, mineralization and sol-gel chemistry. He published 250+ articles and 21 reviews and chapters in monographs, holds five patents, delivered about 200 plenary/keynote/invited talks and lectures at international conferences and universities abroad.

Prof. Y. Shchipunov was one of the founders of the Asian Society of Colloid and Surface Science in 2004. He is a Russian representative in the Federation of Asian Polymer Societies of which he was the President (2021-2022). Prof. Y. Shchipunov organized the First Asian Symposium on Advanced Materials (ASAM) in Vladivostok in 2007 which is now held biennially in Asian countries. The 9th ASAM is planned in Busan (Korea) in November, 2025. He was a chair/co-chair of 7 international conferences. He is a member (corresponding) of Russian Academy of Sciences since 2006, affiliate member of Royal Society of Chemistry since 2015. He was awarded by the Russian government as Prominent Scientist in 1995-1997 and 2001-2003, by the Tokyo University of Science for scientific achievements (2012). The Korean Government granted a professorship in the framework of its World Class University Program in 2009-2013.