Authors
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Jeong-Ki Kim
Department of Forest Biomaterials Engineering, College of Forest and Environmental Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Rajkumar Bandi
Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Ramakrishna Dadigala
Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Le Van Hai
Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Song-Yi Han
Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Gu-Joong Kwon
Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea; Kangwon Institute of Inclusion Technology, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Seung-Woo Cho
Department of Forest Biomaterials Engineering, College of Forest and Environmental Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Seo-Young Ma
Department of Forest Biomaterials Engineering, College of Forest and Environmental Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
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Seung-Hwan Lee
Department of Forest Biomaterials Engineering, College of Forest and Environmental Sciences, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea; Institute of Forest Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea; Kangwon Institute of Inclusion Technology, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, 24341, Republic of Korea
Keywords:
Esterification, Hydrophobic modification, Nanocellulose
Abstract
Esterified nanofibrillated cellulose (eNFC) with varying degrees of substitution was prepared using fatty acid chloride. Furthermore, the effect of esterification on properties of pure NFC and its composites with polybutylene succinate (PBS) was investigated. Lauroyl chloride (LC) with 12 carbon atoms was used for esterification. An increase in the amount of LC increased the degree of substitution (DS), which significantly decreased the water contact angle and improved the hydrophobicity of NFC. The addition of fatty acid to NFCs lowered their crystallinity. However, the fatty acid increased the hydrophobicity of NFCs, thereby improving their dispersibility in nonpolar solvents. Compared with pure NFCs, eNFC exhibited enhanced compatibility with PBS, and the addition of eNFC with an appropriate DS increased the tensile strength and elastic modulus of PBS. These findings suggest the potential of NFC esterification for improving the performance of NFC-based composite materials.
