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Title
Extraction and characterization of cellulose microfibrils from agricultural wastes in an integrated biorefinery initiative
Authors
M. Nuruddin A. Chowdhury S. A. Haque M. Rahman S. F. Farhad M. Sarwar Jahan and A. Quaiyyum
Received
January 25, 2011
Published
Volume 45 Issue 5-6 May-June
Keywords
microfibrils, rice straw, wheat straw, corn stalks, dhaincha, biorefinery, formic/peroxyformic acid
Abstract
The compositional characteristics of rice straw, wheat straw, corn stalks and dhaincha were established in terms of lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose contents, to assess the suitability of agricultural wastes for the extraction of microfibrils. Cellulose microfibrils were prepared by sulphuric acid hydrolysis from these raw materials, which had previously been submitted to a fractionation process by formic acid/peroxyformic acid/peroxide. Cellulose, amounting to 37-43%, lignin (16-20%), hemicelluloses (20-33%) and other compounds were extracted. The extracted cellulose microfibrils were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and X-ray diffraction. All cellulose microfibril samples showed good thermal stability. The extracted microfibrils presented triclinic structure.
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