Abstract
We report on a new process for the spinning of high-performance cellulosic fibers. For the first time, cellulose has been dissolved in the ionic liquid (IL) 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium octanoate ([C2C1im][Oc]) via a thin film evaporator in a continuous process. Compared to other ILs, [C2C1im][Oc] shows no signs of hydrolysis with water. For dope preparation the degree of polymerization of the pulp was adjusted by electron beam irradiation and determined by viscosimetry. In addition, the quality of the pulp was evaluated by means of alkali resistance. Endless filament fibers have been spun using dry-jet wet spinning and an extruder instead of a spinning pump, which significantly increases productivity. By this approach, more than 1000 m of continuous multifilament fibers have been spun. The novel approach allows for preparing cellulose fibers with high Young's modulus (33 GPa) and unprecedented high tensile strengths up to 45 cN/tex. The high performance of the obtained fibers provides a promising outlook for their application as replacement material for rayon-based tire cord fibers.
Highlights
Cellulose is the second most important raw material used in fiber industry (The Fibre Year 2019: World Survey on Textiles and Nonwovens 2019)
The effect of electron beam (EB) radiation on cellulose has been evaluated in several studies (Emsley and Stevens 1994; Hwang et al 2020; Imamura et al 1972; Nakamura et al 1985)
Cellulose-based tire cord fibers are produced by the viscose process
Summary
Cellulose is the second most important raw material used in fiber industry (The Fibre Year 2019: World Survey on Textiles and Nonwovens 2019). Fundamental research addressed the influence of the molecular weight distribution of the cellulose, process parameters like draw ratio, coagulation bath temperature, air gap length and the air gap conditioning on the properties of the final fibers (Guizani et al 2020; Michud et al 2015b, 2016). In this study we present an IL-based spinning process that allows for the production of endless multi-filament fibers with properties comparable to those of commercial tire cord fibers.
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