A simple and rapid method for the diameter detection of cellulose nanocrystals via sedimentation method

Abstract

The diameter of nanocellulose most often is detected using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and other related techniques. These detection methods are not only expensive, time-consuming, and complicated to operate, but also are not conducive to the detection of the diameter during the actual production of nanocellulose. In this study, the settling height of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) was related to CNC diameter by sedimentation method to find a convenient technique for the rapid detection of CNC diameter. The results showed that when the CNC concentration was at 0.2 wt%, the sodium chloride (NaCl) dosage at 40 g/L, and at the standing time of 48 h, the CNC sedimentation performance was the best. Furthermore, with the increase of CNC diameter, the settling height of CNCs gradually decreased. The relationship between CNC diameter and settling height was Y (Settling height) = -30.17 ln(X (CNC diameter)) + 123.64; and the coefficient of determination for the fit was 0.9965. This research provides a new method for the diameter detection of CNCs in the actual CNCs production in enterprises.