An environmentally friendly and economical strategy to cyclically produce cellulose nanocrystals with high thermal stability and high yield. Issue 13 (22nd June 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Tang, Feng; Li, Yingzhan; Huang, Junwen; Tang, Jinhong; Chen, Xinyi; Yu, Hou-Yong; Zhou, Ying; Tang, Dongping
• Is Part Of: Green chemistry. Volume 23:Issue 13(2021)
• Page Start: 4866
• Page End: 4872
• Publication Date: 2021-06-22
• Subjects: Environmental chemistry -- Industrial applications -- Periodicals; Environmental management -- Periodicals; 660
• DOI: 10.1039/d1gc01392k
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1463-9262

Abstract

Abstract : FeCl3 solution was used as a new solvent to develop a green and recyclable strategy to produce CNCs. Specifically, FeCl3 polarizes water molecules to generate H + and catalyzes the hydrolysis of the amorphous area of cellulose. Abstract : Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) have been widely used in various industries; however, green, efficient, low-cost and recyclable CNC preparation still presents great challenges. Herein, ferric chloride (FeCl3 ) solution was used as the solvent to develop a green and recyclable preparation system. Owing to the acidic environment provided by FeCl3, which is a Lewis acid, and the hydrolysis-promoting properties of Fe 3+, the amorphous area of the cellulose could be rapidly hydrolyzed under a hydrothermal environment to produce CNCs. More importantly, the used FeCl3 solution could be reused after simple separation. Throughout the entire cycle, the solvent concentration and pH changed only slightly. In the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results, the prepared CNCs showed a "rice-like" shape with typical CNC dimensions (diameter of ∼38 nm and length of ∼440 nm). The yield was ∼92%, which was much higher than the yields of previously reported methods of CNC preparation. Furthermore, the produced CNCs also have excellent thermal stability ( T max = ∼350 °C). More importantly, the dispersal performance and large specific surface area of the CNCs were studied by using them as a support for PPy. Owing to the residual Fe 3+, Py could polymerize uniformly on the surface of the CNCs. Overall, a green and economical method to achieve sustainable mass production of CNC is provided by this work.