Abstract
SummaryThis research aimed at producing malleable, breathable and water impermeable bacterial cellulose‐based nanocomposites, by impregnating bacterial cellulose (BC) membranes with two commercial hydrophobic polymers used in textile finishing, Persoftal MS (polydimethylsiloxane) and Baygard EFN (perfluorocarbon), by an exhaustion process. These hydrophobic products penetrated the BC membranes and adsorbed tightly onto the surface of the nanofibres, across the entire depth of the material, as demonstrated by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy studies. The water static contact angles, drop absorption over time and vapour permeability values showed that the composites were impermeable to liquid water but permeable to water vapour. The mechanical properties of the BC‐nanocomposites were improved after incorporation of the hydrophobic products, in some of the formulations tested, overall presenting a satisfactory performance. Thus, through a simple and cost‐effective process, hydrophobized, robust, malleable and breathable nanocomposites based on BC were obtained, featuring promising properties for application in the textile and shoe industries.
Highlights
Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a 3D nanofibrillar biopolymer produced through fermentation by bacteria such as the genus Komagataeibacter
BC is free of lignin, hemicellulose and pectin, which are present in plant cellulose, and no extra processing is required for purification
This procedure was adopted in this work to process BC membranes, incorporating different hydrophobic materials into the cellulosic porous network
Summary
Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a 3D nanofibrillar biopolymer produced through fermentation by bacteria such as the genus Komagataeibacter. The particular mechanical properties of BC arise from its’ randomly organized three-dimensional network of interconnected nanofibres, with a diameter of 20– 100 nm and several micrometres in length, resulting in a high specific surface area (Tang et al, 2015; Wu et al, 2016), properties which are very advantageous for the production of composite materials (Lee et al, 2009). BC exhibits high crystallinity, which, coupled with its’ 3D nanofibrillar architecture, results in a high Young’s modulus It has high degree of polymerization, high water holding capacity and high moldability in situ (during fermentation) and ex situ (after fermentation) (Lee et al, 2009). These unique properties have sustained the elevator pitch of several BC applications in the biomedical field, pulp and paper, composites and foods (Andrade et al, 2010; Dourado et al, 2016; Fortunato et al, 2016; Goncßalves et al, 2016; Padra~o et al, 2016)
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