Highly effective grafting of poly(l-lactide) onto cellulose by microwave heating in a CO2 switchable solvent for the fabrication of biodegradable cigarette smoke adsorbent material

Abstract

In this study, a CO2 switching solvent was used to dissolve cellulose, and then poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) side chain was grafted onto cellulose backbone by ring-opening polymerization of lactide under microwave heating to realize the rapid and efficient synthesis of cellulose-graft-poly(l-lactide) (C-g-PLLA). The efficiency of this method is significantly greater than that of the traditional oil bath heating system. The structure and properties of C-g-PLLA were characterized by Fourier transform infrared, Proton nuclear magnetic resonance, X-ray diffraction, Thermogravimetric analysis, and Differential scanning calorimetry. More importantly, C-g-PLLA can be rapidly degraded in both compost and lake water. It also showed good adsorption capacity for nicotine comparable to the commercial cigarette filters made from cellulose acetate. Overall, a rapid and efficient method for preparing C-g-PLLA was proposed, and the feasibility of its application in degradable cigarette smoke adsorption materials was demonstrated.