title: Cellulosic fibers with high aspect ratio from cornhusks via controlled swelling and alkaline penetration.
abstract: Cellulosic fibers with high aspect ratio have been firstly obtained from cornhusks via controlled swelling in organic solvent and simultaneous tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAOH) post treatment within restricted depth. Cornhusks, with around 42% cellulose content, are a copious and inexpensive source for natural fibers. However, cornhusk fibers at 20tex obtained via small-molecule alkaline extraction were too coarse for textile applications. Continuous NaOH treatment would result in fine fibers but with length of about 0.5-1.5mm, too short for textile use. In this research, post treatment using TMAOH and under controlled swelling significantly reduced fineness of cornhusk fibers from 21.3±2.88 to 5.72±0.21tex. Fiber length was reduced from 105.47±10.03 to47.2±27.4mm. The cornhusk fibers had more oriented microstructures and cellulose content increased to 84.47%. Besides, cornhusk fibers had similar tenacity, longer elongation, and lower modulus compared to cotton and linen, which endowed them with durability and flexibility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States.
authors.forename: Zhuanzhuan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Eco-Textiles, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles and Clothing, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China.
authors.forename: Gangwei
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.affiliation: Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States.
authors.forename: Helan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States.
authors.forename: Yiling
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Fashion Design, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States; Key Laboratory of Eco-Textiles, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles and Clothing, Jiangnan University, 1800 Lihu Road, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China; Department of Biological Systems Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States; Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 234, HECO Building, Lincoln, NE 68583-0802, United States. Electronic address: yyang2@unl.edu.
authors.forename: Yiqi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008422:Materials Testing; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D013784:Textiles; D003313:Zea mays / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000644:Quaternary Ammonium Compounds; D002482:Cellulose; C027917:tetramethylammonium
keywords: Aspect ratio; Cornhusk; Natural cellulose fiber; Organic solvent; Tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAOH)