Microencapsulation of camphor using trimethylsilylcellulose

Abstract

Microencapsulation of camphor by trimethylsilylcellulose was performed using oil-in-water emulsion method. Trimethylsilylcellulose (TMSC) with the DS value of 2.41 (CHN analysis) was synthesized by dissolving commercial cellulose in N, N-dimethylacetamide/LiCl followed by reacting with hexamethyldisilazane. Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) in acidic aqueous solution and tetramethylammonium chloride (TMACl) in water were attempted as emulsifiers. The oil phase composed of TMSC and camphor in ethyl acetate was dispersed in emulsifier solution. The mass ratio of TMSC to camphor and emulsifier concentration were optimized to produce high quality microcapsules. Using the mass ratio of 3:7 and 1% (w/v) SDS solution gave well separated microcapsules of TMSC_C_SDS (1). The diameter size in the micron range (10–110 mm) and high camphor content (∼21.07%) were obtained from this sample. The larger size of the capsules obtained from TMACl system indicated the coalescence of the oil droplets. The hydrolysis of the external surface of the microcapsules was observed in the SDS system. However, this caused a minor effect on the cellulose stability in TMSC_C_SDS (1). The freshly prepared microcapsules of TMSC_C_SDS (1) showed the fast release of camphor during first 2 h and reached the equilibrium after 7 h.