Abstract
Surface chemistry of regenerated all-wood-biopolymer fibers that are fine-tuned by composition of cellulose, lignin and xylan is elucidated via revealing their surface energy and adhesion. Xylan additive resulted in thin fibers and decreased surface energy of the fiber outer surfaces compared to the cellulose fibers, or when lignin was used as an additive. Lignin increased the water contact angle on the fiber surface and decreased adhesion force between the fiber cross section and a hydrophilic probe, confirming that lignin reduced fiber surface affinity to water. Lignin and xylan enabled fiber decoration with charged groups that could tune the adhesion force between the fiber and an AFM probe. The fibers swelled in water: the neat cellulose fiber cross section area increased 9.2%, the fibers with lignin as the main additive 9.1%, with xylan 6.8%, and the 3-component fibers 5.5%. This indicates that dimensional stability in elevated humidity is improved in the case of 3-component fiber compared to 2-component fibers. Xylan or lignin as an additive neither improved strength nor elongation at break. However, improved deformability was achieved when all the three components were incorporated into the fibers.Graphical
Highlights
Ionic liquids enable simpler, less-solvent consuming regenerated cellulose fiber spinning process compared to the traditional ones where cellulose is dissolved in N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) or recrystallized via mercerization in alkaline conditions (Adanur 1995)
Cellulose/xylan, cellulose/lignin and cellulose/xylan/lignin dopes were successfully drawn into fibers with diameter decreasing with increasing draw ratio (Fig. 1a)
The lowest draw ratios resulted in largest fiber diameters, between 45 and 60 lm, the cellulose/xylan fibers being the thinnest and the cellulose/lignin the thickest ones
Summary
Less-solvent consuming regenerated cellulose fiber spinning process compared to the traditional ones where cellulose is dissolved in N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) or recrystallized via mercerization in alkaline conditions (Adanur 1995). The fibers swelled in water: the neat cellulose fiber cross section area increased 9.2%, the fibers with lignin as the main additive 9.1%, with xylan 6.8%, and the 3-component fibers 5.5%. Lignin is expected to affect the polarity of the fiber surfaces, while xylan was targeted to increase the acid component of the surface energy of the fibers to provide an additional parameter for tuning the fiber surface properties.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 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 callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
