Valorization of banana leaf waste for cellulose nanofiber extraction: a sustainable approach for leather applications

IF 4.1 4区工程技术 Q3 ENERGY & FUELS

Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery Pub Date : 2026-02-05 DOI:10.1007/s13399-026-07069-y

Athithyan Ilangovan, Sri Bala Kameswari Kanchinadham

{"title":"Valorization of banana leaf waste for cellulose nanofiber extraction: a sustainable approach for leather applications","authors":"Athithyan Ilangovan, Sri Bala Kameswari Kanchinadham","doi":"10.1007/s13399-026-07069-y","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In India, large quantities of banana leaf waste generated from restaurants, event halls, and markets are often discarded in stormwater drains, causing blockages, or dumped in open landfills. This study explores the potential for utilizing this waste to extract cellulose nanofibers (CNF) for leather-related applications. CNF were extracted using an alkali–acid treatment from both the leaf portion (RBL) and the midrib portion (RBS) of banana leaf waste. FE-SEM and AFM analyses confirmed the formation of fibrous nanostructures with diameters in the range of 25–80 nm. XRD analysis verified the presence of cellulose nanofibers, with crystallite sizes of 3.7 nm for CNF derived from the leaf portion (CNF-BL) and 4.0 nm for those from the midrib portion (CNF-BS). The specific surface areas (SBET) were 50.36 m²/g for CNF-BL and 43.42 m²/g for CNF-BS, indicating high surface reactivity suitable for composite applications. The extracted nanofibers were incorporated into leather finishing formulations as additives in binders and pigments, meeting the quality requirements of ISO 11,640. In addition, the nanofibers were successfully used to fabricate a leather-like material exhibiting a tensile strength of 9.27 N/mm² and a tear strength of 15.33 N. Overall, the results demonstrate that banana leaf waste can be effectively valorized into high-performance cellulose nanofibers, supporting sustainable waste management and circular economy practices in the leather industry.</p><h3>Graphical abstract</h3><div><figure><div><div><picture><source><img></source></picture></div></div></figure></div></div>","PeriodicalId":488,"journal":{"name":"Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery","volume":"16 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.1000,"publicationDate":"2026-02-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery","FirstCategoryId":"5","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13399-026-07069-y","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"ENERGY & FUELS","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

In India, large quantities of banana leaf waste generated from restaurants, event halls, and markets are often discarded in stormwater drains, causing blockages, or dumped in open landfills. This study explores the potential for utilizing this waste to extract cellulose nanofibers (CNF) for leather-related applications. CNF were extracted using an alkali–acid treatment from both the leaf portion (RBL) and the midrib portion (RBS) of banana leaf waste. FE-SEM and AFM analyses confirmed the formation of fibrous nanostructures with diameters in the range of 25–80 nm. XRD analysis verified the presence of cellulose nanofibers, with crystallite sizes of 3.7 nm for CNF derived from the leaf portion (CNF-BL) and 4.0 nm for those from the midrib portion (CNF-BS). The specific surface areas (SBET) were 50.36 m²/g for CNF-BL and 43.42 m²/g for CNF-BS, indicating high surface reactivity suitable for composite applications. The extracted nanofibers were incorporated into leather finishing formulations as additives in binders and pigments, meeting the quality requirements of ISO 11,640. In addition, the nanofibers were successfully used to fabricate a leather-like material exhibiting a tensile strength of 9.27 N/mm² and a tear strength of 15.33 N. Overall, the results demonstrate that banana leaf waste can be effectively valorized into high-performance cellulose nanofibers, supporting sustainable waste management and circular economy practices in the leather industry.

Graphical abstract

Abstract Image

查看原文本刊更多论文

香蕉叶废料纤维素纳米纤维提取的增值：皮革应用的可持续方法

在印度，餐馆、活动大厅和市场产生的大量香蕉叶垃圾经常被丢弃在雨水渠中，造成堵塞，或者被倾倒在露天垃圾填埋场。本研究探索了利用这种废物提取纤维素纳米纤维（CNF）用于皮革相关应用的潜力。采用碱酸法从香蕉叶废弃物的叶片部分（RBL）和中脉部分（RBS）提取CNF。FE-SEM和AFM分析证实形成了直径在25-80 nm范围内的纤维状纳米结构。XRD分析证实了纤维素纳米纤维的存在，叶片部分（CNF- bl）的CNF晶粒尺寸为3.7 nm，中脉部分（CNF- bs）的CNF晶粒尺寸为4.0 nm。CNF-BL和CNF-BS的比表面积（SBET）分别为50.36 m²/g和43.42 m²/g，具有较高的表面反应性，适合复合材料的应用。提取的纳米纤维作为粘合剂和颜料的添加剂加入到皮革涂饰配方中，符合ISO 11640的质量要求。此外，纳米纤维还被成功地用于制造一种类似皮革的材料，其抗拉强度为9.27 N/mm²，撕裂强度为15.33 N。总之，研究结果表明，香蕉叶废料可以有效地转化为高性能的纤维素纳米纤维，为皮革工业的可持续废物管理和循环经济实践提供了支持。图形抽象

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery Energy-Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

CiteScore

7.00

自引率

15.00%

发文量

1358

期刊介绍： Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery presents articles and information on research, development and applications in thermo-chemical conversion; physico-chemical conversion and bio-chemical conversion, including all necessary steps for the provision and preparation of the biomass as well as all possible downstream processing steps for the environmentally sound and economically viable provision of energy and chemical products.