Cellulose is the main component of biomass and is the most abundant biopolymer on earth; it is a non-toxic, low-cost material that is biocompatible and biodegradable. Cellulose gels are receiving increasing attention as medical products, e.g., as wound dressings. However, the preparation of cellulose hydrogels employing unmodified cellulose is scarcely reported because of the cumbersome dissolution of cellulose. In previous studies, we developed the new promising cellulose solvent N-butyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium hydroxide in an aqueous solution, which can dissolve up to 20 wt% cellulose within a short time at room temperature. In this study, we employed this solvent system and investigated the gelation behavior of cellulose after crosslinker addition. The swelling behavior in water (swelling ratio, water uptake), the mechanical properties under compression, and the antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis were investigated. We have developed a simple and fast one-pot method for the preparation of cellulose gels, in which aqueous pyrrolidinium hydroxide solution was acting as the solvent and as an antibacterial reagent. The pyrrolidinium hydroxide content of the gels was controlled by adjustment of the water volume employed for swelling. Simple recovery of the solvent system was also possible, which makes this preparation method environmentally benign.
Keywords: antibacterial activity; cellulose; cellulose gels; epichlorohydrin; hydrogels; pyrrolidinium hydroxide.