Mechanical Properties and X-Ray Diffraction of Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch All-Nanocellulose Composite Films

Abstract

The all-nanocellulose composite films were prepared using cellulose solvent system N-dimethylacetamide/lithium chloride (DMAc/LiCl). The process includes partial dissolution of oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) in the N-dimethylacetamide/lithium chloride (DMAc/LiCl) solution followed by the regeneration process. The regeneration process also includes the removal of the N-dimethylacetamide/lithium chloride (DMAc/LiCl) solvent by using distilled water and drying of the films. The all-nanocellulose composite films with OPEFB contents in the range of 1–4 wt% were prepared and analyzed for their mechanical properties and crystallinity. The all-nanocellulose composite film with 1 wt% of OPEFB content showed the best tensile strength and modulus of elasticity with the value of 7.95 and 179.77 MPa, respectively. This could be due to a good dispersion of the cellulose particles in the films. However, the elongation at break for the composite film with 1 wt% of OPEFB content showed lower value than the ones contained higher percentage of OPEFB contents. As the content of OPEFB increases the tensile strength decreases especially at 4 wt% of OPEFB content of the composite film. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis suggests that the all-nanocellulose composite film with 1 wt% of OPEFB content has higher crystallinity compared to the all-nanocellulose composite film with 4 wt% of OPEFB content. This could explain why this particular all-nanocellulose-based composite system performed greater tensile strength and modulus at low OPEFB content (1 wt%).