Extraction and Characterization of Nanocellulose from Waste of Date Palm “Phoenix Dactylifera” as Reinforcement of Polymer Composites

Abstract

Cellulose is the most abundant and renewable polymer in nature. It is characterized by its biodegradability which helps create a friendly environment. This study seeks to describe the nanocellulose obtained from waste date palm, within the dried palms (DP) and the fresh palms (FP) through implementing chemical methods (hydrolysis with H2SO4). Physical properties, morphology, the elemental composition and the thermal stability were determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), zeta sizer, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), whereas energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), respectively. FTIR, SEM and EDX results revealed the effective removal of impurities, hemicellulose and lignin. After treatment, the dried palm (DR) samples contained 35.99% of cellulose and 33.12% of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC), while fresh palm (FP) samples 36.17% of cellulose and 34.35% of CNC. The CNCs have higher crystallinity than the raw fibers and Zeta sizer was between 25 and 1150 nm. TGA analysis showed that DP demonstrated noticeable thermal resistance.