Effect of solvent exchange on the supramolecular structure, the molecular mobility and the dissolution behavior of cellulose in LiCl/DMAc

We investigated the effect of solvent exchange on the supramolecular structure and the molecular mobility of the cellulose molecule to clarify the mechanism of the dissolution of cellulose in lithium chloride/N,N-dimethylacetamide (LiCl/DMAc). Among the celluloses that were solvent exchanged in different ways, the DMAc-treated celluloses dissolved most rapidly. Dissolution of the acetone-treated celluloses was much slower than the DMAc-treated ones, but considerably faster than the untreated one. Such differences in the dissolution behavior were well explained by the differences in the surface fractal dimension calculated from the small-angle X-ray scattering profiles and in the 1H spin–lattice and spin–spin relaxation times estimated from the solid-state NMR spectroscopic measurements. Furthermore, it was suggested from the IR spectra and the 13C spin–lattice relaxation times of cellulose that DMAc is adsorbed on the surface of cellulose even after vacuum-drying and affects the molecular mobility and hydrogen-bonding state of cellulose.

Graphical abstractThe effect of solvent exchange, a pretreatment for the dissolution of native cellulose in lithium chloride/N,N-dimethylacetamide (LiCl/DMAc), on the supramolecular structure and the molecular mobility of cellulose was investigated.