Editorial: The innovation engine and the forest products industry value chain, TAPPI Journal October 2023

As Peter Hart points out in his paper, “Pulp and Paper Mills: The original biorefineries — past performance and limitations to future opportunities,” that is published in this issue (p. 619), pulp and paper mills have been optimizing their processes and producing a variety of byproducts for almost 100 years.

Author: N. Saikumari and K. S. Sudhakhar

ABSTRACT: Several extensive research studies have explored the advantages of green templates in the synthesis of structure and morphology-controlled photocatalytic nanomaterials. This paper compares the abilities of zingiber rhizome extract (ZE) and tapioca starch extracts (TS) in modifying the surface and optical properties of titania nanoparticles (TNP) synthesized by solgel technique. The synthesized nanocatalysts were characterized using various physicochemical techniques. While zingiber (ginger) extract effectively promotes the formation of dual anatase and rutile phases, tapioca extract supports formation of the single anatase phase of titania. These two extracts were examined for the degradation of Congo red in the presence of sunlight. The photomineralization and recyclability of catalysts were evaluated through total organic content analysis. The easy recovery and reusability of zingiber and tapioca biomasses, along with good control over the growth of nanoparticles, enable them to be implicit novel green templates in the successful synthesis of photoactive mesoporous nanotitania.