The invention is an optical film at least containing cellulose acylate and a compound having a structure denoted by General Formula (I) described below, and a polarizing plate and a liquid crystal display device employing the optical film. ##STR00001##
R.sup.1 and R.sup.3 represent a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group, an alkenyl group, a cycloalkyl group, a cycloalkenyl group, or an aryl group, and R.sup.5a and R.sup.5b represent an alkyl group, an alkenyl group, a cycloalkyl group, a cycloalkenyl group, an aryl group, or a heterocyclic group. R.sup.1, R.sup.3, R.sup.5a, and R.sup.5b may have a substituent group.

A cellulosic ester resin modifier for producing a cellulosic ester film, which facilitates obtaining a film that remains transparent even when exposed to high-humidity and high-temperature environments, and with which it is possible to obtain a film having excellent water vapor permeability resistance, and dimensional stability against heat. The present invention also provides a cellulosic ester resin composition using the modifier, a method for producing a polarizing-plate protective film, and a liquid crystal display device, and provides a cellulosic ester resin modifier including a polyester polyol (A) having a phthalic acid residue and an aliphatic glycol residue having 2 to 3 carbon atoms in a main chain skeleton and a diester (B) having an aliphatic glycol having 2 to 3 carbon atoms and an aromatic monocarboxylic acid, in which a mass ratio of [(A)/(B)] is in a range of 90/10 to 60/40.

A hardcoat film including a support and a hardcoat layer, in which the support contains a resin as a main component, a film thickness of the hardcoat layer exceeds 20 μm, the hardcoat layer contains a structure derived from a compound which has one alicyclic epoxy group and one ethylenically unsaturated double bond group and has a molecular weight equal to or less than 300, and a structure derived from a compound which has 3 or more ethylenically unsaturated double bond groups, a radical polymerization initiator and a cationic polymerization initiator.

A cellulose ester composition having high fluidity, the cellulose ester composition containing a cellulose ester (A), an adipate-based compound (B), and a citrate-based compound (C). When a total of the component (A), the component (B), and the component (C) is 100 mass %, a content of the component (B) is from 7 to 20 mass %, a content of the component (C) is from 1 to 14 mass %, a total content of the component (B) and the component (C) is from 21 to 30 mass %, and the remainder is the component (A).

The present invention relates to polymer compositions comprising at least one basic additive, and processes comprising at least one process step to obtain the polymer composition or articles comprising the polymer composition. The polymer composition generally displays an enhanced biodegradability.

The invention relates to systems and techniques for manufacturing articles containing cellulosic material, a coupling agent, and a binder resin, and related processes of making and using the cellulosic articles. In particularly exemplary embodiments, the manufactured articles are door skins, sometimes known as door facings, and doors made from the door skins. The article contains a lipophilic cellulosic material, a coupling agent, and a binder. The coupling agent is believed to increase the hydrophilicity (wetability) of the lipophilic cellulosic material.

Resin particles include mother particles containing a biodegradable resin, in which an alkali metal atomic weight A present on a resin particle surface with respect to a total atomic weight present on the resin particle surface, which is measured by an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and an alkali metal atomic weight B present in the resin particles with respect to the total atomic weight present on the resin particles, which is measured by a fluorescent X-ray spectroscopy, satisfy a relationship of 0≤(A/B)<0.15 and 0.005 atomic %≤B≤0.5 atomic %.

According to an example aspect of the present invention, there is provided an extrusion foaming method for producing low-density extrusion foam from a thermoplastic cellulose-based starting material.

A cellulosic particle contains 90 parts by mass or more and 99.5 parts by mass or less of cellulose; and 0.5 parts by mass or more and 10 parts by mass or less of a cellulose derivative.

The present invention provides resin beads that can provide various types of products, such as a cosmetic having excellent tactile impression, spreadability on the skin, and transparency, that can be substituted for resin particles composed of a synthetic material derived from petroleum, and that have favorable biodegradability, and the present invention also provides various types of products, such as a cosmetic using the resin beads. The resin beads are formed with a resin containing cellulose as a main component. The resin beads have a cumulative 50% particle size on a volume basis of 50 μm or smaller, a degree of sphericity of 0.7 to 1.0, a degree of surface smoothness of 70 to 100%, a degree of solidity of 50 to 100%, and a biodegradation rate for 5 days, as measured in accordance with JIS K6950:2000 (ISO 14851:1999), of 20% or more, and the content of the cellulose in the resin is 90 to 100% by mass. In addition, the present invention provides a product of any one of a cosmetic, a dermatological preparation, a paint, a shaped article, a film, a coating agent, and a resin composition which contain the resin beads.