{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,1]],"date-time":"2026-06-01T09:03:04Z","timestamp":1780304584710,"version":"3.54.0"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]],"date-time":"2026-05-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1780012800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The valorization of secondary biomass streams is an important step toward more resource-efficient biorefinery concepts and reduced dependence on fossil-based materials. In this study, agricultural and forest residues, namely Atlas cedar cones, mixed conifer cones, hazelnut shells, walnut shells, coffee silverskin, and cocoa shells, were investigated as feedstocks for producing colloidal lignin particles. Lignin-rich extracts were obtained by Organosolv pretreatment using 60 wt% aqueous ethanol, followed by particle formation through solvent shifting and purification by ultrafiltration. A particular novelty of this work is that highly different feedstocks were processed under identical Organosolv and solvent-shifting conditions, enabling a direct comparison of their suitability for colloidal lignin particle production within one consistent process route. The feedstocks differed markedly in extractive content and chemical profile, as shown by sequential Soxhlet extraction and qualitative GC-MS screening. Despite these differences in extract composition, solvent shifting yielded colloidal lignin particles with largely similar properties. Dynamic light scattering showed hydrodynamic diameters of 65\u201388 nm immediately after precipitation for all samples except cocoa shell, which formed strong agglomerates. The ultrafiltration step further introduced an industry-relevant downstream purification stage by removing most water-soluble low-molecular-weight compounds before product evaluation. After purification and redispersion, particle sizes ranged from 121 to 389 nm, indicating partial aggregation but overall successful recovery of stable colloidal dispersions. All purified particle suspensions exhibited comparable antioxidant activity in the FRAP (ferric reducing antioxidant power) assay, ranging from 12.3 to 18.4 mg lignin per mg ascorbic acid equivalents. These results demonstrate that even chemically diverse biomass side streams can be converted into purified colloidal lignin suspensions with similar colloidal behavior and functional performance. The findings highlight the potential of low-value agricultural and forest residues as promising raw materials for lignin-based antioxidant and material applications.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym18111352","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]],"date-time":"2026-05-29T15:57:18Z","timestamp":1780070238000},"page":"1352","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Valorization and Characterization of Agricultural and Forest Biomass Residues Through Colloidal Lignin Particle Production"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5941-6401","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Julia","family":"Tomasich","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Circular Bioeconomy and Biorefineries Research Group, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-1026-9028","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lukas","family":"Kaindl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Circular Bioeconomy and Biorefineries Research Group, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bastian","family":"Venclik","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Unit of Technical Electrochemistry, Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2979-476X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sebastian","family":"Serna-Loaiza","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Circular Bioeconomy and Biorefineries Research Group, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9424-1558","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Stefan","family":"Beisl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Lignovations GmbH, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6490-5840","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michael","family":"Harasek","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Circular Bioeconomy and Biorefineries Research Group, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Richard","family":"Nad\u00e1nyi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Circular Bioeconomy and Biorefineries Research Group, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"Lutter, S., Luks, F., and Stagl, S. (2018, January 14\u201315). Towards a Socio-Ecological Transformation of the Economy. Proceedings of the Background Report for the Growth in Transition Conference, Vienna, Austria. Available online: https:\/\/conference2018.wachstumimwandel.at\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/GiT_WU_report_finale.pdf."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"De Schutter, L., Giljum, S., H\u00e4yh\u00e4, T., Bruckner, M., Naqvi, A., Omann, I., and Stagl, S. (2019). Bioeconomy Transitions through the Lens of Coupled Social-Ecological Systems: A Framework for Place-Based Responsibility in the Global Resource System. Sustainability, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/su11205705"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"Annevelink, B., Chavez, L.G., van Ree, R., and Gursel, I.V. (2022). Global Biorefinery Status Report 2022, IEA Bioenergy."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"126415","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2021.126415","article-title":"Global status of lignocellulosic biorefinery: Challenges and perspectives","volume":"344","author":"Singh","year":"2022","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6012","DOI":"10.1021\/acssuschemeng.2c00838","article-title":"Biomass Pre-Extraction as a Versatile Strategy to Improve Biorefinery Feedstock Flexibility, Sugar Yields, and Lignin Purity","volume":"10","author":"Smit","year":"2022","journal-title":"ACS Sustain. Chem. Eng."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106413","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biombioe.2022.106413","article-title":"Characterization of bark, needles and cones from silver fir (Abies alba mill.) towards valorization of biomass forestry residues","volume":"159","author":"Butnaru","year":"2022","journal-title":"Biomass Bioenergy"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lee, Y.-G., Cho, E.-J., Maskey, S., Nguyen, D.-T., and Bae, H.-J. (2023). Value-Added Products from Coffee Waste: A Review. Molecules, 28.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules28083562"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Sharma, S., Tsai, M.-L., Sharma, V., Sun, P.-P., Nargotra, P., Bajaj, B.K., Chen, C.-W., and Dong, C.-D. (2022). Environment Friendly Pretreatment Approaches for the Bioconversion of Lignocellulosic Biomass into Biofuels and Value-Added Products. Environments, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/environments10010006"},{"key":"ref_9","first-page":"1","article-title":"Conifer Cones: An Alternative Raw Material for Industry","volume":"17","author":"Sahin","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Pharm. Res. Int."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"S\u00e1nchez, M., Laca, A., Laca, A., and D\u00edaz, M. (2023). Cocoa Bean Shell: A By-Product with High Potential for Nutritional and Biotechnological Applications. Antioxidants, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/antiox12051028"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"154","DOI":"10.1186\/s12934-018-1002-z","article-title":"Biobutanol production from coffee silverskin","volume":"17","year":"2018","journal-title":"Microb. Cell Fact."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"405","DOI":"10.1557\/s43577-025-01037-z","article-title":"Technical lignins in polymer materials: A sustainable approach to advanced materials","volume":"51","author":"Oswald","year":"2026","journal-title":"MRS Bull."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"50","DOI":"10.1186\/s40643-023-00673-0","article-title":"Organosolv pretreatment: An in-depth purview of mechanics of the system","volume":"10","author":"Nair","year":"2023","journal-title":"Bioresour. Bioprocess."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Chundawat, S.P.S., Balan, V., Sousa, L.D.C., and Dale, B.E. (2010). Thermochemical pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. Bioalcohol Production, Woodhead Publishing.","DOI":"10.1533\/9781845699611.1.24"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"186","DOI":"10.1039\/D3GC03274D","article-title":"Organosolv biorefinery: Resource-based process optimisation, pilot technology scale-up and economics","volume":"26","author":"Tofani","year":"2024","journal-title":"Green Chem."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"449","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2018.09.072","article-title":"From lignin to valuable products\u2013strategies, challenges, and prospects","volume":"271","author":"Wang","year":"2019","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Nad\u00e1nyi, R., H\u00e1z, A., Lis\u00fd, A., Jablonsk\u00fd, M., \u0160urina, I., Majov\u00e1, V., and Baco, A. (2022). Lignin Modifications, Applications, and Possible Market Prices. Energies, 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/en15186520"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Vasile, C., Baican, M., Academy, R., and Poni, P. (2023). Lignins as Promising Renewable Biopolymers and Bioactive Compounds for High-Performance Materials. Polymers, 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym15153177"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"109977","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rser.2020.109977","article-title":"Circular economy aspects of lignin: Towards a lignocellulose biorefinery","volume":"130","author":"Garlapati","year":"2020","journal-title":"Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"129038","DOI":"10.1016\/j.molliq.2025.129038","article-title":"Colloidal lignin particles for eco-friendly and fully emulsified Pickering emulsions: Physical stability and interfacial properties","volume":"441","author":"Colucci","year":"2026","journal-title":"J. Mol. Liq."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131287","DOI":"10.1016\/j.colsurfa.2023.131287","article-title":"Development of colloidal lignin particles through particle design strategies and screening of their Pickering stabilizing potential","volume":"666","author":"Colucci","year":"2023","journal-title":"Colloids Surf. A Physicochem. Eng. Asp."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1065","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.biomac.2c01385","article-title":"Opportunities and Challenges for Lignin Valorization in Food Packaging, Antimicrobial, and Agricultural Applications","volume":"24","author":"Boarino","year":"2023","journal-title":"Biomacromolecules"},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"34793","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.1c06087","article-title":"Colloidal Lignin Particles and Epoxies for Bio-Based, Durable, and Multiresistant Nanostructured Coatings","volume":"13","author":"Henn","year":"2021","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_24","unstructured":"Sluiter, A., Ruiz, R., Scarlata, C., Sluiter, J., and Templeton, D.J.L.A.P. (2005). Determination of Extractives in Biomass: Laboratory Analytical Procedure (LAP), Issue Date 7\/17\/2005; Technical Report."},{"key":"ref_25","unstructured":"Poole, C.F. (2020). Liquid-Phase Extraction. Handbooks in Separation Science, Elsevier."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Beisl, S., Loidolt, P., Miltner, A., Harasek, M., and Friedl, A. (2018). Production of Micro- and Nanoscale Lignin from Wheat Straw Using Different Precipitation Setups. Molecules, 23.","DOI":"10.3390\/molecules23030633"},{"key":"ref_27","first-page":"1","article-title":"Determination of Structural Carbohydrates and Lignin in Biomass","volume":"1617","author":"Sluiter","year":"2008","journal-title":"Lab. Anal. Proced."},{"key":"ref_28","unstructured":"Sluiter, A.D., Hames, B.R., Ruiz, R.O., Scarlata, C.J., Sluiter, J., and Templeton, D.W. (2026, May 21). Determination of Sugars, Byproducts, and Degradation Products in Liquid Fraction Process Samples, Available online: https:\/\/docs.nrel.gov\/docs\/gen\/fy08\/42623.pdf."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"70","DOI":"10.1006\/abio.1996.0292","article-title":"The Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma (FRAP) as a Measure of \u201cAntioxidant Power\u201d: The FRAP Assay","volume":"239","author":"Benzie","year":"1996","journal-title":"Anal. Biochem."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"188","DOI":"10.1007\/s00107-025-02341-w","article-title":"Comprehensive analysis of the chemical composition of conifer cones collected from Polish forests","volume":"83","author":"Kawalerczyk","year":"2025","journal-title":"Eur. J. Wood Prod."},{"key":"ref_31","first-page":"339","article-title":"Chemical Composition of Fourteen Different Coniferous Species Cones Growing Naturally in Turkey","volume":"57","author":"Kilic","year":"2012","journal-title":"Wood Res."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"128680","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2023.128680","article-title":"Lignin recovery from cocoa bean shell using microwave-assisted extraction and deep eutectic solvents","volume":"372","author":"Mao","year":"2023","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2300093","DOI":"10.1002\/mame.202300093","article-title":"Beyond Yield Optimization: The Impact of Organosolv Process Parameters on Lignin Structure","volume":"308","author":"Bergrath","year":"2023","journal-title":"Macromol. Mater. Eng."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3493","DOI":"10.1007\/s11947-014-1349-z","article-title":"Chemical, Functional, and Structural Properties of Spent Coffee Grounds and Coffee Silverskin","volume":"7","author":"Ballesteros","year":"2014","journal-title":"Food Bioprocess Technol."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"21","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biortech.2015.08.102","article-title":"Organic solvent pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass for biofuels and biochemicals: A review","volume":"199","author":"Zhang","year":"2016","journal-title":"Bioresour. Technol."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Adamcyk, J., Beisl, S., Amini, S., Jung, T., Zikeli, F., Labidi, J., and Friedl, A. (2021). Production and Properties of Lignin Nanoparticles from Ethanol Organosolv Liquors\u2014Influence of Origin and Pretreatment Conditions. Polymers, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym13030384"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Grzybek, J., Sepperer, T., Petutschnigg, A., and Schnabel, T. (2021). Organosolv Lignin from European Tree Bark: Influence of Bark Pretreatment. Materials, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/ma14247774"},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"175","DOI":"10.1007\/s13399-019-00424-2","article-title":"Characterization of walnut, almond, and pine nut shells regarding chemical composition and extract composition","volume":"10","author":"Cardoso","year":"2020","journal-title":"Biomass Convers. Biorefin."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2372","DOI":"10.1007\/s10924-021-02067-9","article-title":"Spent Coffee Grounds and Coffee Silverskin as Potential Materials for Packaging: A Review","volume":"29","author":"Garcia","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Polym. Environ."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Argenziano, R., Moccia, F., Esposito, R., D\u2019Errico, G., Panzella, L., and Napolitano, A. (2022). Recovery of Lignins with Potent Antioxidant Properties from Shells of Edible Nuts by a Green Ball Milling\/Deep Eutectic Solvent (DES)-Based Protocol. Antioxidants, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/antiox11101860"},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"107685","DOI":"10.1016\/j.biotechadv.2020.107685","article-title":"Lignin nanoparticles enter the scene: A promising versatile green tool for multiple applications","volume":"47","author":"Schneider","year":"2021","journal-title":"Biotechnol. Adv."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"262","DOI":"10.1186\/s12951-022-01477-8","article-title":"Nanoparticle classification, physicochemical properties, characterization, and applications: A comprehensive review for biologists","volume":"20","author":"Joudeh","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Nanobiotechnol."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Zhang, Z., Terrasson, V., and Gu\u00e9nin, E. (2021). Lignin Nanoparticles and Their Nanocomposites. Nanomaterials, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/nano11051336"},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"716","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2022.04.228","article-title":"A review on lignin antioxidants: Their sources, isolations, antioxidant activities and various applications","volume":"210","author":"Lu","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112105","DOI":"10.1016\/j.indcrop.2020.112105","article-title":"Pure, stable and highly antioxidant lignin nanoparticles from elephant grass","volume":"145","author":"Trevisan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Ind. Crops Prod."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"17166","DOI":"10.1021\/acssuschemeng.9b03535","article-title":"Controlled Preparation of Corncob Lignin Nanoparticles and their Size-Dependent Antioxidant Properties: Toward High Value Utilization of Lignin","volume":"7","author":"Zhang","year":"2019","journal-title":"ACS Sustain. Chem. Eng."}],"container-title":["Polymers"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/18\/11\/1352\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,1]],"date-time":"2026-06-01T08:10:24Z","timestamp":1780301424000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/18\/11\/1352"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]]},"references-count":46,"journal-issue":{"issue":"11","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6]]}},"alternative-id":["polym18111352"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/polym18111352","relation":{},"ISSN":["2073-4360"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2073-4360","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]]}}}