Biodegradability of cellulose fabrics

Abstract

Biodegradability of cellulose fabrics was evaluated by use of a soil burial test, an activated sewage sludge test, and an enzyme hydrolysis. Surface changes after biodegradation were observed by optical microscopy. From X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), changes in the crystallinities and the internal structures as a result of degradation were also investigated. It was shown that biodegradability decreased in the following order: rayon Ͼ cotton Ͼ Ͼ acetate. Rayon fibers, which have a low crystallinity and a low degree of orientation, showed the highest biodegradability in most cases. However, in spite of its low crystallinity, acetate fibers exhibited very low biodegradability, probably because of the presence of hydrophobic groups in its structure. On the other hand, linen showed an inconsistent behavior in that it had the highest biodegradability in the soil burial test, but a lower biodegradability than that of cotton in the activated sewage sludge test. XRD analysis revealed that there was a slight increase in the crystallinity of linen, cotton, and rayon fabrics at the initial stage, but a continuous decrease thereafter. From the correlation analysis, it was revealed that the biodegradability of cellulose fabrics was closely related to the moisture regain of the fibers, which reflects the hydrophilicity and internal structure of the fibers at the same time.

Gaseous Fuel Production from Nonrecyclable Paper Wastes by Using Supported Metal Catalysts in High‐Temperature Liquid Water

“…The samples exhibit strong peaks at 2q = 22.68, attributed to the cellulose (002) crystal plane. [25,26] The full width at half maximum of the XRD peak for the cellulose powder was larger than for the paper and microcrystalline cellulose samples. The cellulose crystallite sizes, estimated by using the Scherrer equation, followed the order cellulose powder > recycled paper > microcrystalline cellulose (Table 3).…”

Effects of spinning speed and heat treatment on the mechanical properties and biodegradability of poly(lactic acid) fibers

“…That explains why the crystallinity increased relatively at first and then decreased as degradation progressed. 20 Figure 7(C) shows the X-ray diffraction pattern of H2000. The peak was broader at 25 days; we interpreted this to mean the degradation of crystalline part had started.…”

Silver effect on the biodegradation process of styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene based thermoplastic elastomers compounds upon weathering exposure

“…Table 1 presents microbial counts, pH, and silver concentration in the soil exposed to loaded and unloaded TPE. Cellulose material was used as a reference of a material that is certainly degraded (Park & Kang, 2004). The lower number of bacteria and fungi in control soil can be related to the absence of an available substrate for microbial utilization.…”