Towards sustainable thermoplastic woody materials prepared from continuous steam explosion followed by oxidation-reduction

Yanhong Feng; Hang Cheng; Bo Lei; Yong Liang; Zhitao Yang; He Hezhi

doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2019.04.019

Towards sustainable thermoplastic woody materials prepared from continuous steam explosion followed by oxidation-reduction

Carbohydr Polym. 2019 Jul 15:216:322-330. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2019.04.019. Epub 2019 Apr 4.

Authors

Yanhong Feng¹, Hang Cheng², Bo Lei³, Yong Liang⁴, Zhitao Yang⁵, He Hezhi⁶

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Pulp and Paper Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; National Engineering Research Center of Novel Equipment for Polymer Processing, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; Key Laboratory of Polymer Processing Engineering, Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China. Electronic address: yhfeng@scut.edu.cn.
² National Engineering Research Center of Novel Equipment for Polymer Processing, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; Key Laboratory of Polymer Processing Engineering, Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China. Electronic address: chenghang0201@163.com.
³ National Engineering Research Center of Novel Equipment for Polymer Processing, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; Key Laboratory of Polymer Processing Engineering, Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China. Electronic address: meleibo1991@mail.scut.edu.cn.
⁴ School of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Changzhou Institute of Technology, Changzhou, 213002, PR China. Electronic address: meyongliang@foxmail.com.
⁵ National Engineering Research Center of Novel Equipment for Polymer Processing, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; Key Laboratory of Polymer Processing Engineering, Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China. Electronic address: meztyang@scut.edu.cn.
⁶ National Engineering Research Center of Novel Equipment for Polymer Processing, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China; Key Laboratory of Polymer Processing Engineering, Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, PR China. Electronic address: pmhzhe@scut.edu.cn.

PMID: 31047072
DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2019.04.019

Abstract

Converting plant fibers into thermoplastic materials are challenging in a sustainable society. Herein, continuous steam explosion pretreatment was used to improve the reactivity of plant fiber. Meanwhile, periodate oxidation and subsequent sodium borohydride reduction were used to plastify plant fiber. SEM and BET results showed that steam explosion pretreatment can gradually dissociate bundle structure of eucalyptus fiber and increase its specific surface area, which improve the reaction efficiency significantly. The FTIR and NMR indicated that the eucalyptus fiber had been successfully oxidized and reduced. XRD and TGA tests showed that the crystallinity and thermal stability of the modified fibers decreased with the increase of oxidation time. When the oxidation time is 8 h, the mechanical properties of the modified material are optimal, and the glass transition temperature is significantly reduced. These results suggest that this all-component plant fiber material is a possible alternative to petroleum-based materials.

Keywords: Continuous steam explosion; Eucalyptus fiber; Periodate oxidation; Plasticizing; Sodium borohydride reduction.