EXTRACTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF NATURAL CELLULOSE FIBERS FROM REED STRAW: MORPHOLOGICAL, MICROSTRUCTURAL AND THERMAL PROPERTIES

Abstract

As an available resource rich in cellulose, agricultural residues have attracted a lot of interest for textile and other applications. Herein, reed straw fiber was obtained from a typical agricultural waste – reed straw – by an alkali-oxygen one-bath process. The effects of the amount of sodium hydroxide and hydrogen peroxide, the treatment temperature and time on the degumming rate were discussed. The optimum technological parameters of the alkali-oxygen one-bath process were found as follows: the dosage of sodium hydroxide was 35 g/L, the dosage of hydrogen peroxide – 30 mL/L, treatment temperature – 85 °C and cooking time – 2 h. Under these conditions, the degumming rate achieved was 54.30%. The prepared fiber will be considered as a promising and sustainable raw material for the textile industry and other applications.