Abatement of Metal Ion Contents from Cotton Linter for the Manufacture of Regenerated Cellulose

Abstract

The reduction of metal ion from the cotton linter for the preparation of NMMO (N-methylmorpholine N-oxide)-based dissolving pulp was investigated. The NMMO-based dissolving pulp was usually used for the manufacture of high quality fabrics, and need to have high alpha cellulose content and high brightness. NMMO, which is environmentally friendly, and reusable after recovering process, is very sensitive to the metal ions such as Cu, Fe, Mg, and Cr. Electron beam, sulfuric acid, acetic acid, and ozone treatment before bleaching were used and the concentration changes of the metal ions were compared to that of EDTA, a chelating agent. It was found that both acid treatments (sulfuric and acetic acid) were very effective and comparable to EDTA treatment at the same dosage in metal ion reduction, but electron beam and ozone treatment were not. The sulfuric acid treatment turned out to be effective in metal ion reduction, and most inexpensive.