Materials from Natural Sources

The Plant Polymer Reserch Unit (PPL) chemically modifies bio-based materials such as polysaccharides and proteins from corn, and evaluates the structure-property relationships of the modified materials for use in new applications.

Natural polymers are modified by various thermomechanical methods; additives and chemical reagents are also used to modify the properties of natural polymers.

Additionally, spectroscopic techniques and molecular modeling and simulation are used to provide a fundamental understanding of how processing variables affect properties and their potential use.

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