The development of lignin towards a natural and sustainable platform for optical materials

Abstract

Lignin is the main component of plant cell walls, conferring upon lignocellulosic biomass both excellent mechanical and barrier properties. At the same time, the considerable number of unsaturated groups and conjugated structures present in lignin render it a promising candidate for applications in the optical domain. In recent years, the development of the optical properties of lignin and lignin-derived optical materials has paved the way for a novel avenue of lignin valorization. This review is concerned with the mechanisms of lignin-derived optical materials, with particular emphasis on the physical and chemical structures that are linked to their optical performance, including UV absorption, photothermal conversion, and photoluminescence. Additionally, the potential applications of these materials in energy storage, bioimaging, structural materials, and photonic crystal are also presented, demonstrating the unique optical properties of lignin. Finally, the challenges and future directions of lignin as an optical material are presented, with the objective of developing lignin into a polymer biobased raw material that can serve advanced emerging industries.