We investigate frustrated antiferromagnetic Heisenberg quantum spin chains at
T=0 for
S=23 and
S=2 using the DMRG method. We localize disorder and Lifshitz points, confirming that quantum disorder points can be seen as quantum remnants of classical phase transitions. Both in the
S=23 and the
S=2 chain, we observe the disappearance of effectively free
S=21 and
S=1 end spins, respectively. The frustrated spin chain is therefore a suitable system for clearly showing the existence of free end spins ${S}^{\ensuremath{'}}=[S/2]$ also in half-integer antiferromagnetic spin chains with
S>21. We suggest that the first-order transition found for
S=1 in our previous work [A. K. Kolezhuk, R. Roth, and U. Schollw\"ock, Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 5142 (1996); Phys. Rev. B 55, 8928 (1997)] is present in all frustrated spin chains with
S>21, characterized by the disappearance of effectively free end spins with ${S}^{\ensuremath{'}}=[S/2].$
Using exact numerical diagonalization and the conformal field theory approach, we study the effect of magnetic frustrations due to diagonal exchange bonds in a system of two coupled mixed-spin
(1,21) Heisenberg chains. It is established that relatively moderate frustrations are able to destroy the ferrimagnetic state and to stabilize the critical spin-liquid phase typical for half-integer-spin antiferromagnetic Heisenberg chains. Both phases are separated by a narrow but finite region occupied by a critical partially polarized ferromagnetic phase.