Editorial: From understanding the biological function of lignin in plants to production of colloidal lignin particles

There is a paradigm shift going on in lignin utilization. High-volume materials and chemicals, as well as more engineered materials, like carbon fibers or active carriers, are currently being developed. However, in order to enhance lignin utilization in these and other value-added products, there is a need for better understanding of lignin function in woody tissues plus control over isolation, fractionation and other processing technology. Therefore, part of this issue is dedicated to articles about lignin. These range from lignin extraction to scale-up of the colloidal lignin particle production process. Focus is on fundamental understanding of interactions, a necessity for successful applications of this complex biopolymer.