The cellulose of Boehmeria nivea as natural flocculants: synthesis, modification, and flocculation analysis

Abstract

Due to their non-toxicity and biodegradability, natural polymeric flocculants have gained popularity in water and wastewater treatment in recent years. Because of its broad availability, renewability, sustainability, and surface modification potential, cellulose, the most common polymer on the planet, is regarded as one of the foundation polymers for flocculant production and modification. The following article consists of a review of the latest developments regarding biopolymers, in particular, cellulose as a natural flocculant. One of the plants that can be developed in Indonesia is Boehmeria nivea, or what is known as Ramie, which contains cellulose that is still not utilized optimally. There is a method of isolation of alpha-cellulose derived from Boehmeria nivea and its application as a flocculant in synthetic wastewater presented in this paper. The alpha-cellulose of Boehmeria nivea was used as a flocculant in jar testing using kaolin suspension (5 g/L). The study shows that adding alpha-cellulose as an aid to PAC slightly increased the turbidity removal efficiency, and further modification of alpha-cellulose by cationic grafts into cationic cellulose is needed.