Regenerated bacterial cellulose fibers prepared by the NMMO•H2O process

In this work, bacterial cellulose (BC) was dissolved in N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide monohydrate (NMMO center dot H2O), and regenerated BC fibers were prepared. Structure and properties of the regenerated BC fibers were characterized by different techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), x-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and single filament electric tenacity tester. Results revealed that whole fibers showed a circular shape with fairly regular size along the fiber axis. There was no significant difference between the structure of native BC and the regenerated BC fibers. The regenerated BC fibers had a cellulose II crystalline structure, lower degree of crystallinity, smaller crystallite sizes, and better thermal stability than the native BC. Tensile strength of the regenerated BC fibers was 0.5-1.5 cN/dtex, and their extension at break was 3-8%. Crown Copyright (C) 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.