Characterization of the water-insoluble pyrolytic cellulose from cellulose pyrolysis oil

► Water-insoluble pyrolytic cellulose was isolated from cellulose fast pyrolysis oil by water precipitation. ► The pyrolysis temperature effect on the pyrolytic cellulose production was investigated. ► The pyrolytic cellulose was characterized by GPC, EA, TGA, Py-GC/MS and FTIR. ► The pyrolytic cellulose underwent thermo-degradation at 127-800 °C and three mass loss peaks were observed. ► The structures of polysaccharide and ketones were detected in the pyrolytic cellulose.