Ionic liquids for the production of man-made cellulosic fibers: Opportunities and challenges

Michael Hummel*, Anne Michud, Marjaana Tanttu, Shirin Asaadi, Yibo Ma, Lauri K.J. Hauru, Arno Parviainen, Alistair W.T. King, Ilkka Kilpeläinen, Herbert Sixta*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter or book articleScientificpeer-review

86 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The constant worldwide increase in consumption of goods will also affect the textile market. The demand for cellulosic textile fibers is predicted to increase at such a rate that by 2030 there will be a considerable shortage, estimated at ~15 million tons annually. Currently, man-made cellulosic fibers are produced commercially via the viscose and Lyocell™ processes. Ionic liquids (ILs) have been proposed as alternative solvents to circumvent certain problems associated with these existing processes. We first provide a comprehensive review of the progress in fiber spinning based on ILs over the last decade. A summary of the reports on the preparation of pure cellulosic and composite fibers is complemented by an overview of the rheological characteristics and thermal degradation of cellulose–IL solutions. In the second part, we present a non-imidazolium-based ionic liquid, 1,5-diazabicyclo[4.3.0]non-5-enium acetate, as an excellent solvent for cellulose fiber spinning. The use of moderate process temperatures in this process avoids the otherwise extensive cellulose degradation. The structural and morphological properties of the spun fibers are described, as determined by WAXS, birefringence, and SEM measurements. Mechanical properties are also reported. Further, the suitability of the spun fibers to produce yarns for various textile applications is discussed.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationCellulose Chemistry and Properties
Subtitle of host publicationFibers, Nanocelluloses and Advanced Materials
EditorsO. Rojas
Pages133-168
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2015
MoE publication typeA3 Part of a book or another research book

Publication series

SeriesAdvances in Polymer Science
Volume271
ISSN0065-3195

Funding

This study is part of the Future Biorefinery program financed by the Finnish Bioeconomy Cluster (FIBIC) and the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (TEKES). The authors would like to thank Anders Persson and Anders Berntsson from the Swedish School of Textiles (University of Borås, Sweden) for their kind assistance with the yarn preparation.

Keywords

  • Cellulosic fiber
  • Dry-jet wet fiber spinning
  • Ionic liquid
  • Rheology
  • Yarn spinning
  • [DBNH]OAc

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