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Phase assembly-induced transition of three dimensional nanofibril- to sheet-networks in porous cellulose with tunable properties

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Abstract

Ultralight and highly porous cellulose was fabricated via cellulose/sodium hydroxide/urea aqueous solution followed by gelation, coagulation and freeze-drying in the current work. The water content and freeze rate of cellulose coagulated sample are two crucial factors controlling the morphology, density and porosity of porous cellulose, which led to an interesting morphological transition from three dimensional nanofibrillar network to sheet network in porous cellulose. It was proposed that the aggregation and assembly of cellulose-rich phase and crystallization of water-rich phase were closely related to this transition. Based on this concept, a series of cellulose materials with densities varied from 0.129 to 0.330 g cm−3 and corresponding porosities ranged from 91.4 to 78.0 %, were obtained. The porous celluloses showed a good ductility (strain to fracture is more than 30 %) and high modulus, which also could be tuned by porous morphology. The new understanding on the morphological transition in porous cellulose could be beneficial for the development of “green” porous materials.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants No. 51121001, 51203104, and 50925311), and New Teachers Fund for Doctor Stations, Ministry of Education (No. 20120181120101) for financial support. We also would like to express sincere thanks to the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SSRF, Shanghai, China), for the kind help on WAXD measurements.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Polymer Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Materials Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China

    Chun-Yan Liu, Gan-Ji Zhong, Hua-Dong Huang & Zhong-Ming Li

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  1. Chun-Yan Liu
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  2. Gan-Ji Zhong
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  3. Hua-Dong Huang
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  4. Zhong-Ming Li
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Correspondence to Gan-Ji Zhong or Zhong-Ming Li.

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Liu, CY., Zhong, GJ., Huang, HD. et al. Phase assembly-induced transition of three dimensional nanofibril- to sheet-networks in porous cellulose with tunable properties. Cellulose 21, 383–394 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-013-0096-z

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