Esterification of oat-hull cellulose

The influence of the composition of the working mixed acid, mass ratio, and nitration temperature and time on the properties and yield of cellulose nitrates from an unconventional feedstock such as the large-tonnage grain-processing residue, oat hulls, was studied. Experimental statistical models were constructed on the basis of a series of experiments. They enable the properties of cellulose nitrates to be predicted as a function of the mixed acid composition and conditions of the nitration process. The mixed acid composition and the mass ratio of mixed acid to cellulose were found to have the primary effect on the properties of cellulose nitrates, while the nitration temperature and time had no noticeable effect on the final result. Under the optimum synthetic conditions, pilot batches of cellulose nitrates were produced, which corresponded to Colloxiline-N in the main properties: mass fraction of nitrogen was 12.08-12.18%, viscosity was 12-15 mPa s, and the solubility in an alcoholether mixture was 98%. The correspondence of the synthesized samples to Colloxiline-N was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. The cellulose nitrates derived from the unconventional feedstock may find practical use in manufacturing ballistic powder and composite explosives.