Physicochemical Dynamics and Site-Specific Crosslinking at Cellulose Nanocrystal Interfaces for Multifunctional Material Design

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) have emerged as versatile nanomaterials with exceptional mechanical, optical, and surface-chemical properties that enable their integration into diverse composite systems. This review summarizes key strategies for engineering CNC-based composites through covalent, non-covalent, and hybrid crosslinking mechanisms, highlighting how these interactions govern material structure and performance. Beyond conventional bulk composites, recent studies have explored their incorporation into interfacial and surface-assembled systems, thereby broadening the design space for CNC-enabled materials. These approaches are finding utility across multiple application areas, particularly in biomedical, packaging, and functional material design. Collectively, these developments underscore CNCs’ versatility as multifunctional building blocks and their growing potential to drive next-generation material innovation.