Several types of lignocellulosic raw materials including wheat straw, sisal bagasse and sugarcane bagasse have different contents of cellulosic components. In our studies, aimed at isolating cellulose-degrading actinobacteria from Brazilian soils, a promising strain was selected and identified as Streptomyces sp. SLBA-08. This strain was tested for cellulase production under submerged fermentation in a mineral medium using different carbon sources (sisal bagasse, sugarcane bagasse and straw), as well as ammonium sulphate in different concentrations as nitrogen source. The results showed that medium containing 2.4% (w/v) sisal bagasse and 0.3% (w/v) ammonium sulphate resulted in the highest production of carboxymethylcellulase (1.11 U mL-1), after 48 hours. The pH and temperature profile showed optimal activity at pH 6.0 and 50 °C. As for thermostability, carboxymethylcellulases were tolerant at 50 °C, retaining 70% of the maximal activity even after 2h of incubation. The results obtained indicate that Streptomyces sp. SLBA-08 was capable of producing CMCase using lignocellulosic residues, especially sisal bagasse.

Uma das cargas mais utilizadas na fabricação de espumas flexíveis de poliuretano é o carbonato de cálcio (CaCO3) por ser não abrasivo, não tóxico e de fácil pigmentação. Contudo, é observado que o excesso de CaCO3 comercial usado nas indústrias causa deformações permanentes, o que prejudica a qualidade do produto final. No presente trabalho é proposto o estudo do efeito da concentração de CaCO3 comercial na fabricação de espumas flexíveis de poliuretano. Foram utilizadas diferentes concentrações de CaCO3 na síntese das espumas, as quais foram submetidas à análises térmica e morfológica, afim de verificar as alterações provocadas pela introdução progressiva da carga.

One filler often utilized in flexible polyurethane foams is calcium carbonate (CaCO3) because it is non-abrasiveness, non-toxicity and facilitated pigmentation. However, it is observed that the excess of commercial CaCO3 utilized in industry possibly causing permanent deformations and damaging the quality of the final product. The effect of different concentrations of commercial CaCO3, in flexible foams, was studied. Different concentrations of CaCO3 were used for the synthesis of flexible polyurethane foams, which were submitted to morphological and thermal analyses to verify the alterations provoked by the progressive introduction of this filler.