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. 2023 Sep 27;15(19):3901.
doi: 10.3390/polym15193901.

Ecotoxicity of Caffeine as a Bio-Protective Component of Flax-Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy-Composite Building Material

Klára Kobetičová  1 , Jana Nábělková  2 , Viktor Brejcha  1 , Martin Böhm  1 , Miloš Jerman  1 , Jiří Brich  1 , Robert Černý  1
Affiliations

Ecotoxicity of Caffeine as a Bio-Protective Component of Flax-Fiber-Reinforced Epoxy-Composite Building Material

Klára Kobetičová et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

Caffeine is a verified bio-protective substance in the fight against the biodegradation of cellulose materials, but its ecotoxicity in this context has not yet been studied. For this reason, the ecotoxicity of flax-fiber-reinforced epoxy composite with or without caffeine was tested in the present study. Prepared samples of the composite material were tested on freshwater green algal species (Hematococcus pluvialis), yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisae), and crustacean species (Daphnia magna). Aqueous eluates were prepared from the studied material (with caffeine addition (12%) and without caffeine and pure flax fibers), which were subjected to chemical analysis for the residues of caffeine or metals. The results indicate the presence of caffeine up to 0.001 mg/L. The eluate of the studied material was fully toxic for daphnids and partially for algae and yeasts, but the presence of caffeine did not increase its toxicity statistically significantly, in all cases. The final negative biological effects were probably caused by the mix of heavy metal residues and organic substances based on epoxy resins released directly from the tested composite material.

Keywords: algae; caffeine; composite materials; daphnids; ecotoxicity; epoxy resin; flax; yeasts.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Caffeine chemical structure.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The used pure flax fibers.
Figure 3
Figure 3
An example of a cut flax-fiber-reinforced epoxy composite with epoxide treatment and caffeine (1%).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Photo of the model organism—algae (Hematococcus pluvialis). Videomicroscope DSM was used; magnification 600×.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Photo of the model organism—yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisae). Videomicroscope DSM was used; magnification 600×.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Photo of the model organism—crustacean (Daphnia magna). Videomicroscope DSM was used, magnification 400×.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Test with algae (H. pluvialis)—Inhibition/stimulation of all eluates of samples in comparison with the aquatic control. The data are expressed as the inhibition of the specific growth rate of algal biomass. A total of 3 replicates were used for all samples including control. FF = Flax Fibers, FF + E = Flax Fibers treated by Epoxy resin, FF + E + C 1% = Flax Fibers treated by Epoxy resin and a Caffeine solution of 10 g/L, FF + E + C 2% = Flax Fibers treated by Epoxy resin and Caffeine solution of 20 g/L. The asterisks express the statistical significance in comparison to the control medium, Dunnett’s post hoc test at the α level of 0.05).
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