ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering
pubs.acs.org/journal/ascecg
Research Article
Figure 3. (A) Density and porosity of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens. (B) Air resistance of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens. (C) Pressure drop of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens. (D) Water vapor permeability of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens. (E) Filtration efficiency of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens. (F) Quality factor of EFB/(hairy) cellulose fiber nonwovens.
fibrillation was estimated by comparing the water retention values of the refined and unrefined cellulose fibers, with a higher water retention value indicating a greater degree of fibrillation. The water retention value of neat cellulose pulp fibers was found to be 1.10 g/g. This is consistent with the water retention value of unrefined kraft pulp derived from acacia wood reported in the literature. 32 The refining process progressively increased the water retention value of the hairy cellulose fibers to 1.81, 2.24, and 2.73 g/g for cellulose fibers refined for 10, 20, and 30 min, respectively. This increase is attributed to the generation of microfibrils (hairy structures) and fines, as well as the opening of internal pores in the
cellulose fibers, which enhance the fiber’s capacity to trap and retain water within its structure. 33 2.2. Structure and Morphology of EFB/(Hairy) Cellulose Fiber Nonwovens. Figure 2A shows the structure and the morphology of the EFB fiber nonwovens without the presence of (hairy) cellulose pulp fibers. The EFB fibers, ca. 150 μ m in diameter, are packed together, with large pore openings observed. When 10 wt % (hairy) cellulose fibers were introduced (see Figure 2B), the cellulose fibers can be seen forming a network that bridges the gaps between adjacent EFB fibers. Increasing the binder loading to 20 wt % improved the coverage of the EFB fibers by the (hairy) cellulose fibers
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https://doi.org/10.1021/acssuschemeng.5c00041 ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2025, 13, 6209 − 6221
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