Abstract
Fibers isolated from Agave lechuguilla(lechuguilla) and fourcroydes (henequen) contain about 80%cellulose, 5% hemicellulose and 15% lignin. They are a renewable resource,interesting as feedstock for new products obtained by chemicalfunctionalization. In the present paper the reactivity of such fibrousmaterialsunder typical conditions for modification of cellulose was studied. Treatmentwith n-octanol/aqueous NaOH of the fibers leads to an activated expandedgel-like material with enhanced accessibility. Carboxymethylation, sulfation,acetylation and tritylation reactions as well as subsequent carboxymethylationof the trityl derivative and selective oxidation of the primary hydroxylfunction of carboxymethylated products with TEMPO/NaBr/NaClO were successfullycarried out under conditions typical for cellulose reactions. The products werecharacterized by means of 13C-NMR and 1H-NMR spectroscopyandHPLC after complete depolymerization, by GPC, and by the determination ofsolubility.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call