Preparation and Characterization of Nanowhiskers Cellulose from Fiber Arrowroot (Maranta arundinacea)

The agribusiness generates countless sources of biomass that are not appropriately and / or adequately utilized, turning them into industrial wastes. This study aims to explore the Arrowroot fiber as a source of raw material for the cellulose nanowhiskers production by acidic hydrolysis. Hydrolyses were carried out varying the temperature and the sulfuric acid concentration, with the hydrolysis reaction time fixed and constant stirring. The nanowhiskers of cellulose extracted from the arrowroot fibers has great potential as reinforcing agents in the nanocomposites production regarding to others cellulose nanowhiskers sources, because they have shown a similar performance as the other fibers, good thermal stability, crystallinity index and good aspect ratio as compared to the literature.

Keywords:
nanowhiskers; arrowroot; cellulose; acid hydrolysis