Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Cellulose, cilt.32, sa.18, ss.10529-10547, 2025 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
The emergence of nanomaterials is groundbreaking based on their performance that is inconceivable by conventional materials. Among these, nanocellulose stands out as a biodegradable nanomaterial derived from renewable plant sources. At the nanoscale, cellulose exhibits exceptional properties, largely due to its unprecedented surface area-to-volume ratio. Lignocellulosic fibers, sourced from traditional fiber plants or agro-residual biomass, provide a vast raw material base for nanocellulose production. In this study, okra and hemp plants were subjected to nanocellulose extraction processes. Via biological degumming, bast and fruit fibers were separated from okra plants and bast fibers from hemp plants, exposing the woody stem cores. The bast, fruit, and stem core fibers were cleaned from non-cellulosic components by use of an environmentally-friendly chlorine-free procedure. The isolated cellulose was subsequently broken into nanocrystals through acidic hydrolysis. The effects of the applied treatments on fibers’ morphological, chemical, crystal, and thermal properties have been investigated. FT-IR and SEM analyses indicated substantial removal of lignin, hemicelluloses, and waxes; whereas XRD diffractograms revealed partial conversion of cellulose Iβ to cellulose II during cellulose isolation processes. At the end of the isolation stage, fiber diameters dropped to 24.42—54.88 microns, and 77.48% to 90.11% crystallinity indices were attained. The yield of nanocellulose production processes was found to be 14.36% and 20.36% based on okra and hemp bast fiber mass, respectively. FESEM images revealed partial conversion to nanocellulose. Cellulose nanocrystals obtained from okra bast and hemp bast fibers displayed similar ribbon/rod structures with diameters in the range of 20–50 nm and lengths between 200–500 nm, while their crystallinity indices were between 61.63% and 70.78%, respectively. This study demonstrates the feasibility of nanocellulose production from okra bast and hemp bast fibers by use of a chlorine-free chemical process series.