Cellulose-reinforced Composites: From Micro-to Nanoscale

This paper present the most relevant advances in the fields of: i) cellulose fibres surface modification; ii) cellulose fibres-based composite materials; and iii) nanocomposites based on cellulose whiskers or starch platelet-like nanoparticles. The real breakthroughs achieved in the first topic concern the use of solvent-free grafting process (plasma) and the grafting of the matrix at the surface of cellulose fibres through isocyanate-mediated grafting or thanks to "click chemistry". Concerning the second topic, it is worth to mention that for some cellulose/matrix combination and in the presence of adequate aids or specific surface treatment, high performance composite materials could be obtained. Finally, nanocomposites allow using the semi-crystalline nature and hierarchical structure of lignocellulosic fibres and starch granules to more deeply achieve this goal profitably exploited by Mother Nature