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Paper, textiles, food or medicines - cellulose is essential for their production. It is a hierarchical material in which each macrofilament is composed of smaller fibres or microfilaments. These, in turn, are composed of smaller parts, defined as elementary nanofibers with nanometric size (CNFs-cellulose nanofibers). Scientists from the Slovak Academy of Sciences, together with their Czech colleagues, bring a unique solution to produce cellulose nanofibers in a cheaper, more efficient and ecological way.

"We have found a way to solve the shortcomings of current production techniques - production costs, energy consumption, ecological sustainability, efficiency and scaling of processes important for industrial production. We bring a cheap and ecological possibility to produce cellulose nanofibers with a high yield without the need for any enzymatic pretreatment," says Gianmarco Taveri from the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry SAS.

Researchers from the Centre for Advanced Materials Application SAS and the Institute of Physics of Materials of the Czech Academy of Sciences set the goal of designing a new method of producing cellulose nanofibers by mechanical breakdown of cellulose from any source - pure cellulose, regenerated cellulose, cotton or paper.

"The method uses a semi-solid water-based medium composed of sodium silicate, in which cellulose precursors and hammers, punches or presses are capable of providing strong high-speed deformation. There is massive breaking of cellulose chains and cutting of fibres to nanometric size. The sodium silicate medium is cheap, non-toxic and easy to remove while being a highly effective storage medium," adds the chemist.

Nanocellulose prepared by the proposed production method is suitable for the further development of nanocomposites for various applications, especially ceramic, metal and polymer nanocomposites. The new production method is the subject of an international patent application.

Edited by Monika Tináková

Foto: unsplash.com/Flash Dantz