Cellulose nanocrystals-based nanocomposites

In this chapter, an effort has been made to summarize the outstanding research and development related to cellulose nanocrystal-reinforced nanocomposites. A detailed study showed the isolation of crystalline part of cellulose fibers using various chemicals is reported. Furthermore, different functional groups emerged since used chemicals during isolation steps are discussed and their interference during composites production is reported (effect on dispersion, distribution, mechanical properties, etc). Various processing routes are also reported for the production of dimensional nanocomposites. Authors have tried to show a comparative study of various processing routes and impact on final properties. The opted processing routes somehow affect the properties, which someway indicate the possible application in the future. In the last, two emerging applications of cellulose nanocrystal-based nanocomposites have been discussed in short. Water purification and fabrication of scaffold for regeneration of bone are new and budding fields, required biodegradable and biocompatible dimensional structures for green future. Therefore, fabricated cellulose nanocrystal-based composites might be a possible solution of these hurdles, which not only make the process green but also directly convert the waste materials into valuable products.