Evaluation of the effects of chemical composition and refining treatments on the properties of nanofibrillated cellulose films from sugarcane bagasse

The different chemical and mechanical pre-treatments applied to pulp prior to nanofibrillation may also influence the characteristics of the fibrils and prepared films. In this work, the effects of the chemical composition and the degree of fibrillation of sugarcane bagasse pulps on the properties of the resulting nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) films were investigated. Several environmentally-friendly treatments that reduce cost and simplify processing were applied to the bagasse fibres. Ethanol-based organosolv pulps with different residual lignin contents (2.9%, 5.0%, and 9.4%) were refined by Jokro milling and Bauer disk refining. Nanofibrils were isolated through an enzymatic treatment followed by high-intensity sonication. NFC films with similar morphologies were obtained with high crystallinity without changes in thermal stability relative to those of the initial materials. The residual lignin content affects the nanofibrillation process, the mechanical properties of the NFC filmsand modifies the film-water interactions. The combination of mechanical refining and enzymatic treatment was successful applied to produce homogeneous nanofibrils from sugarcane bagasse. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.