Synthesis of cellulose/titanium dioxide hybrids in supercritical carbon dioxide
Abstract
The modifications and applications of natural cellulose have attracted more and more interest in recent years, sparked by the progressive shortage of the fossil energy resources and increase in the technological interests in sustainable and renewable raw materials. In this paper, a novel approach for preparation of cellulose/titanium dioxide hybrids was achieved by utilizing supercritical carbon dioxide-assisted impregnation. The hybrids, with a very small scale in length, suggest that the titania particles were not only coating on the external surface but also penetrating into the micro-cavity structure of the cellulose fibers. The penetrating and swelling effect of supercritical carbon dioxide, with a colsovent of