The Changes of Cellulose in Hydrolysis of Willow (Salix alba L.) Wood
Keywords:
cellulose, willow, hydrolysis, crystallinity, FTIR, average polymerization stage, polydispersity, GPCAbstract
Some characteristics of cellulose were studied before and after hydrolysis of willow (Salix alba L.) wood by GPC and FTIR spectroscopy. The hydrolysis was performed at 180 °C and different reaction times. The degrees of polymerization of cellulose decreased, molecular distribution changed and total crystallinity of cellulose increased. The increase is probably caused by degradation of amorphous cellulose. Aqueous hydrolysis seems to be a prospective pretreatment before enzymatic hydrolysis.