Tracing characteristic variations of cellulose nanocrystals during the post-synthesis purification process

초록

The production of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from biomass involves pretreatment, CNC synthesis, and post-synthesis purification. Information on quality variation during the different stages of pretreatment and CNC synthesis is well documented; however, the post-synthesis purification stage has received little attention. In this study, characteristic variations of CNC during the post-synthesis purification process were investigated. The stages in the process were washing (first and second), neutralization, and centrifugation. CNC's yield decreased after the second washing and neutralization. Cellobiose and cellotriose were detected in the supernatants after the first and second washings. After neutralization, CNC showed a higher colloidal dispersion compared to the first and the second washings. The dimension, morphological, and structural properties were moderately altered during the purification process. Crystallinity increased while crystallite size reduced as CNC purification progressed. The CtCBD3 bound to CNC's surface reduced by 24.27% after the second washing and increased by 47.44% after neutralization. The results in this study provide comprehensive information regarding the overall changes in CNC's characteristics during its purification.

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