Porous bacterial cellulose prepared by a facile surfactant-assisted foaming method in azodicarbonamide-NaOH aqueous solution

Bacterial cellulose (BC) with a porous structure was prepared via a facile surfactant-assisted foaming method in azodicarbonamide (AC)-NaOH aqueous solution under mild condition. The time-saving and flexible procedure comprises immersing and foaming of BC membranes in AC solution, washing and subsequent freeze drying. The results showed that BC with the surfactant Tween 80 assisted foaming treatment had the homogeneous and interconnected spherical macroporous structure with the pore size up to 20 μm. Compared to native BC, its mesoporous surface area was increased from 56.87 m2/g to 169.86 m2/g, the porosity was increased from 28.3% to 90.8% and the maximum water adsorption was increased from 997% to 7611%.

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► BC with porous structure was prepared by surfactant-assisted foaming.
► Porous structure consisted of uniformly spherical macropores and enlarged mesopores.
► The maximum water adsorption of hierarchically porous BC reached up to 7611%.
► The promising porous BC can be used in adsorption, separation and other applications.