Macromolecules, 37 (20), 7683 -7687, 2004. 10.

1021/ma049300h S00249297(04)09300-3
Web Release Date: September 11, 2004
Copyright 2004 American Chemical Society

All-Cellulose Composite
Takashi Nishino,* Ikuyo Matsuda, and Koichi Hirao
Department of Chemical Science and Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kobe
University, Rokko, Nada, Kobe 657-8501, Japan
Received April 9, 2004
Revised Manuscript Received June 21, 2004
Abstract:
An all-cellulose composite, in which both the fibers and the matrix are cellulose, was
prepared by distinguishing the solubility of the matrix cellulose into the solvent from that
of the fibers through pretreatment. The structure, mechanical, and thermal properties of
this composite were investigated using an X-ray diffraction, a scanning electron
microscope, a tensile test, and dynamic viscoelastic and thermomechanical analyses. The
tensile strength of uniaxially reinforced all-cellulose composite was 480 MPa at 25 C,
and the dynamic storage modulus was as high as 20 GPa at 300 C. These were
comparable or even higher than those of conventional glass-fiber-reinforced composites.
In addition, a linear thermal expansion coefficient was about 10-7 K-1. This all-cellulose
composite shows substantial advantages, that is, it is composed of sustainable resources,
there is less interface between the fiber and the matrix, it possesses excellent mechanical
and thermal performance during use, and it is biodegradable after the service.
doi:10.1016/j.polymer.2005.08.040
Copyright 2005 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.
All-cellulose nanocomposite
Polymer
Volume 46, Issue 23, 14 November 2005, Pages 10221-10225
W. Gindla,
a

and J. Keckesb

BOKU-Vienna, Department of Material Science and Process Engineering, A-1190

Vienna, Austria bErich Schmid Institute for Materials Science, Austrian Academy of
Sciences, A-8700 Leoben, Austria

Received 8 August 2005;

revised 11 August 2005;
accepted 13 August 2005.
Available online 26 August 2005.

Abstract
Cellulose-based nanocomposite films with different ratio of cellulose I and II were
produced by means of partial dissolution of microcrystalline cellulose powder in lithium
chloride/N,N-dimethylacetamide and subsequent film casting. The mechanical and
structural properties of the films were characterised using tensile tests and X-ray
diffraction. The films are isotropic, transparent to visible light, highly crystalline, and
contain different amounts of undissolved cellulose I crystallites in a matrix of regenerated
cellulose. The results show that, by varying the cellulose I and II ratio, the mechanical
performance of the nanocomposites can be tuned. Depending on the composition, a
tensile strength up to 240 MPa, an elastic modulus of 13.1 GPa, and a failure strain of
8.6% were observed. Moreover, the nanocomposites clearly surpass the mechanical
properties of most comparable cellulosic materials, their greatest advantage being the fact
that they are fully biobased and biodegradable, but also of relatively high strength.
Keywords: Cellulose; Nanocomposite; Self-reinforcement

All-cellulose composites by surface selective dissolution of aligned ligno-cellulosic

fibres, Composites Science and Technology, Volume 68, Issues 10-11, August 2008,
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All-cellulose nanocomposite
Polymer, Volume 46, Issue 23, 14 November 2005, Pages 10221-10225
W. Gindl, J. Keckes

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