One-pot treatment of cellulose using iron oxide catalysts to produce nanocellulose and water-soluble oxidised cellulose

This research explains the one-pot process of cellulose fibrillation to procure nanocellulose fibres and water-soluble oxidised cellulose using iron oxide catalysts with hydrogen peroxide. The process involved three stages. First, cellulose underwent depolymerisation to form nanocellulose fibres. Second, nanocellulose was oxidised to a water-soluble product, and the final stage was the complete decomposition. Factors such as the valency of ions in the crystal lattice of catalyst, its particle size, and reaction time influenced the treatment. By controlling these factors, either nanocellulose fibres or water-soluble oxidised cellulose with high yields of 83% and 38% produced, respectively. Nanocellulose had 73% crystallinity with DP (degree of polymerisation), 150, and the dimension of 30–110 nm thickness and 1–5 μm in length. The water-soluble product was oxidised with a carboxyl content of 2.9 mmol/g and DP, 25. This research gave an alternative method and eliminated the need for halogenated reagents, strong acids, and mechanical pretreatments.