Modern Technologies for Creating Powdered Cellulose and Nanocellulose Composites

Abstract

The review provides information about the initial and modern phases of creating methods and stages of technologies for producing powdered cellulose, as well as microfibrillar, microcrystalline, and nanocellulose. The raw materials for powdered cellulose are waste from the woodworking and agricultural industries, as well as processed products from the pulp, paper, and textile industries. Historically established mechanical, physical, chemical, and biological methods are presented in the review with information on the possibilities of using additional stages, for example, the steam-explosive method. Information is provided on comparative structural studies of the presence of functional groups of lignocellulosic raw materials and powdered celluloses obtained from them, taking into account the supramolecular structure and residual lignin. It is shown that powdered cellulose can be widely used in sovereign technologies of the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries as binders and emulsifiers and can be processed into ethers and esters, as well as into fibers (through solutions). Nonaqueous solutions of cellulose and mixtures of cellulose with synthetic polymers open up the possibility of creating carbon fiber materials and composites (uniquely combining high strength, chemical and heat resistance, as well as electrical conductivity and low density), which are important in scientific and practical terms in expanding the range of products of the textile and medical industries, as well as a variety of equipment with unique properties for the automotive industry, rocket and missile engineering, and various special-purpose equipment. The development of these technologies is, of course, interdisciplinary.