Abstract
Cellulosic polysaccharides have increasingly been recognized as a viable substitute for the depleting petro-based feedstock due to numerous modification options for obtaining a plethora of bio-based materials. In this study, cellulose triacetate was synthesized from pure cellulose obtained from the waste lignocellulosic part of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.). To achieve a degree of substitution (DS) of the hydroxyl group of 2.9, a heterogeneous acetylation reaction was carried out with acetic anhydride as an acetyl donor. The obtained cellulose ester was compared with a commercially available derivative and characterized using various analytical methods. This cellulose triacetate contains approximately 43.9% acetyl and has a molecular weight of 205,102 g·mol−1. The maximum thermal decomposition temperature of acetate was found to be 380 °C, similar to that of a reference sample. Thus, the synthesized ester derivate can be suitable for fabricating biodegradable and “all cellulose” biocomposite systems.
Highlights
Developing sustainable products from biobased polysaccharides has become the primary focus of research in academia and industry for various applications
The significant findings of the present work demonstrated the successful utilization of cellulose from date palm truck mesh to obtain cellulose acetate with properties equivalent to those of commercial derivatives
A commercially viable heterogeneous acetylation procedure was employed, and complete conversion of hydroxyl to acetate groups was achieved by using acetic anhydride as an acetyl donor
Summary
Developing sustainable products from biobased polysaccharides has become the primary focus of research in academia and industry for various applications. Sugarcane bagasse was used to isolate pure cellulose first and acetylated heterogeneously to obtain cellulose triacetate with a degree of substitution of 2.6–3 [9]. Cellulose triacetate with a degree of substitution (DS) of 2.76 was reported to be obtained [13] In addition to these agricultural waste residues, industrial wastes such as towels [14], cotton fabrics [15], cigarette butts [16], empty tissue rolls and egg trays [17] have been explored for cellulose acetate production. It is estimated that each palm tree produces 20 to 35 kg of biomass and that approximately 1 million metric tons of biomass waste are accrued each year [19] This lignocellulosic waste biomass has the potential to be a sustainable source of cellulose and its derivatives for a variety of uses.
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