Microcrystalline cellulose treated by steam explosion and used for thermo-mechanical improvement of polypropylene

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The use of cellulose fibers derived from renewable resources as reinforcement in polymeric composites provides positive environmental benefits with respect to disposal and raw material savings. Microcrystalline cellulose is a regenerated cellulose material that is free of lignin and hemicellulose, widely used in various applications. Recently, there has been enormous interest in producing polymer nanocomposites using cellulose nanofibers as reinforcement. Moreover, the steam explosion process is an ecofriendly method to modify cellulose fibers by inducing fibrillation, allowing the production of nanofibers. Fibrillation of microcrystalline cellulose using steam explosion process as the only cellulose treatment process was not yet studied in the literature. In the present work, steam explosion process was applied to commercial microcrystalline cellulose and the obtained fibers were characterized and employed in composites with polypropylene for evaluation of the thermal, mechanical, and morphological properties in relation to the matrix. The results showed that this process promoted partial fibrillation to nanosized diameter, and an increase in crystalline degree and thermal stability of the original fiber. As for the polypropylene/cellulose composites in the absence of compatibilizer, there was an increase of thermal degradation temperature and mechanical properties measured by dynamic-mechanical analysis in comparison with pure polypropylene.