Novel Biopolymer for Cellulose Modifications

Kurzfassung

A Swedish research SME has developed a new biopolymer with xyloglucan grafted along a chitosan backbone. The co-polymer show excellent adsorption to cellulosic materials and can be used for modification in applications such as pulp, paper and textile. In addition, the co-polymer can be modified with various functional groups which allows for an efficient introduction of new functionalities to a cellulosic material. The SME is looking for industrial partners for application development.

Details

A new method to modify cellulose or introduce functionality to cellulose fibres has been developed by creating a novel biopolymer. The method utilises the plant polysaccharide xyloglucan´s unique ability to strongly bind to cellulose.

The novel biopolymer has side chains of xyloglucan grafted along a chitosan backbone. The polysaccharide chitosan has many interesting features such as antibacterial properties. By keeping the xyloglucan molecules unmodified xyloglucan retains its intrinsic high affinity for cellulose. The co-polymer can be used to modify cellulose since it is readily adsorbed to cellulose fibres e.g. wood or cotton in the form of pulp, paper or textile.

When the co-polymer is added as a wet-end additive to pulp the paper strength increase dramatically. The co-polymer can also be used to introduce a vast number of different functionalities to cellulose by attaching beneficial groups along the chitosan backbone. Beneficial groups can be almost any molecule that introduces for example charged groups, hydrophobic groups, dyes or UV-absorbers.

By this method functionality can be introduced to cellulosic material without loss of cellulose fiber integrity.

This method for cellulose modification can truly be classified as “green chemistry”. The new biopolymer is made from naturally derived polymers and the chemistries involved to make the biopolymer are water based. Even the adsorption of the polymer to cellulose fibres is performed in water.

Innovative Aspects:
• Biopolymer with excellent adsorption to cellulose that can be used to introduce functionality to cellulosic materials
• Cellulose modification without loss of cellulose fiber integrity or strength
• Many types of functional groups can be attached to the biopolymer to increase the density of beneficial groups on cellulosic materials
• Green chemistry
o Biopolymer of two naturally derived polymers
o Adsorption to cellulose is performed in water solution at room temperature