Esterified rice straw cellulose was synthesized by the reaction of cellulose with lauroyl chloride in the presence of toluene medium. Microwave heating was used to accelerate the esterification of cellulose. The optimum condition for esterification was investigated in term of microwave power and reaction time. Solubility of modified cellulose was characterized. The cellulose films were prepared by solvent casting method and mechanical properties of cellulose films were tested. The result shows that the best condition for cellulose esterification was 100 W of microwave power and 15 minute of esterification time. Percentage of weight increase of esterified cellulose at this condition was 143.83 %. Modified cellulose can be dissolved in organic solvent such as toluene, dichloromethane and chloroform. Tensile properties of cellulose films were examined. Tensile strength, Young’s modulus and % elongation at break of rice straw cellulose ester film were 2.33 MPa, 56.63 MPa and 4.21 %, respectively.
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