Tailoring the ternary synergistic effect of TBAH/H2O/DMSO for room-temperature and ultrafast cellulose dissolution

Abstract

Effective dissolution is crucial for unlocking the extensive application potential of cellulose. Herein, we developed a ternary tetrabutylammonium hydroxide/water/dimethyl sulfoxide (TBAH/H2O/DMSO) solvent for efficient dissolution of cellulose. In this solvent, hydroxide anions (OH⁻) from TBAH/H2O act as the primary agent for cleaving hydrogen bonds among cellulose chains, while DMSO mitigates the hydration of OH⁻ and enhances the stability of cellulose solution. The optimized system (TBAH/H2O/DMSO = 25/25/50, w/w/w) rapidly dissolved 4 wt.% of microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) at room temperature within 30 seconds. Remarkably, the presented solvent demonstrated broad applicability in dissolving cellulose with different degrees of polymerization (DP), which can dissolve 16.2 wt.% of MCC (DP = 238) and 5.9 wt.% of cotton pulp (DP = 1116) within 20 min. This efficient and versatile dissolution strategy provides a promising platform for the valorization of cellulose in advanced materials and sustainable technologies.