PHYSICO-CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF POLYSACCHARIDES AND EXTRACTION OF CELLULOSE FROM ANNUAL AGRICULTURAL WASTES

In Tunisia, important quantities of almond and fig stems are accumulated each year. An approach to valorizing these renewable resources has been proposed in this study. This work is focused on the chemical composition of almond and fig stems. The polysaccharide content for both materials was determined to be of about 60%. That is the main reason that justifies their pulping. The sugar composition of almond and fig stem waste consisted of glucose and xylose, and minor quantities of galactose, arabinose and mannose. In this study, single cellulose fibres were extracted from almond and fig stems using chemical treatment. The extraction with soda-anthraquinone delignification, which is the simplest alkaline pulping process, was followed by bleaching. Moreover, the optimization of cellulose extraction was done using the Box-Behnken experimental design. To characterize the ensuing fibres, several methods were used.