Abstract
Mechanically strong all-cellulose composites are very attractive in the terms of fully bio-based and bio-degradable materials. Unidirectional flax-based all-cellulose composites are prepared via facile room-temperature impregnation with an ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium acetate. To determine the optimal processing conditions, the kinetics of flax dissolution in this solvent is first studied using optical microscopy. Composite morphology, crystallinity, density, the volume fraction of cellulose II and tensile properties are investigated, indicating that flax dissolution should be within certain limits. On the one hand, the amount of cellulose II formed through dissolution and coagulation should be high enough to “fuse” flax fibers, resulting in a density increase. On the other hand, only the surface layer of the fibers should be dissolved to maintain the strength provided by the inner secondary layer and avoid a detrimental decrease in crystallinity. The highest Young’s modulus and strength, 10.1 GPa and 151.3 MPa, respectively, are obtained with a crystallinity of 43% and 20 vol% of cellulose II.
Highlights
An increasing demand for new eco-friendly materials has led to a significant development in the field of bio-based and bio-degradable composites as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based materials
The mechanical properties and composition of the flax used in this work are summarized in Table 2; a representative stress–strain curve of elementary flax fibers can be seen in Figure S1 of the Supporting
All-cellulose composites based on unidirectional oriented flax fibers were prepared via impregnation with the room temperature ionic liquid [EMIM][OAc]
Summary
An increasing demand for new eco-friendly materials has led to a significant development in the field of bio-based and bio-degradable composites as sustainable alternatives to petroleum-based materials. Natural fibers are renewable and are widely used as fillers and reinforcing matter in polymer composites. In most cases, the composite matrix is still based on oil-derived polymers. A special class of composites is all-cellulose composites (ACCs), which are composed of a cellulose matrix reinforced with cellulose fibers [1]. Based on the principle of all-polymer composites, ACCs overcome the problem of a weak fiber/matrix adhesion when fibers and matrix are made of different substances. All-cellulose composites are 100% bio-based and bio-degradable [2,3,4]
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