Phase diagram, solubility limit and hydrodynamic properties of cellulose in binary solvents with ionic liquid

Cellulose solubility phase diagrams in two binary solvents based on 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate (EmimAc) mixed with water and with dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) were built. The minimal amount of EmimAc molecules needed to dissolve cellulose is 2.5-3 moles per anhydroglucose unit. This proportion allows calculation of the maximal cellulose concentration soluble in EmimAc-DMSO at any composition; in EmimAc it is around 25-27 wt%. Water forms hydrogen bonds with EmimAc and thus competes with cellulose for ionic liquid; the solubility of cellulose in EmimAc-water is much lower than that in EmimAc-DMSO. Hydrodynamic properties of cellulose in two solvent systems were compared. In EmimAc-DMSO cellulose intrinsic viscosity practically does not depend on DMSO content as predicted by the phase diagram. The intrinsic viscosity in EmimAc-water first increases with water content due to cellulose self-aggregation and then abruptly decreases due to coagulation. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.