Publicação
Extraction of matter from cotton textile wastes and its application in the reinforcement of spun fibers
| Resumo: | The rapid expansion of global cotton production has intensified concerns over the environmental burden of textile waste. Pre-consumer cotton residues, often discarded during manufacturing, represent a valuable resource for sustainable recycling strategies. This research aimed at extracting cellulose acetate (CA) from cotton textile waste via acid hydrolysis and to assess its potential as a reinforcing agent in polycaprolactone (PCL) fibers produced via electrospinning, forcespinning, and wet-spinning. The extraction process successfully yielded recycled cellulose acetate (rCA) with a degree of substitution of 2.61 ± 0.17, comparable to commercial CA (2.7-3.0). Chemical analyses confirmed that the acetylated cellulose structure was preserved, even though rCA showed a higher content of hydroxyl groups compared with the commercial material. Solvent recovery trials demonstrated that > 80 % acetic acid and water could be successfully reintegrated into the extraction process, reinforcing its circular and resource-efficient potential. When incorporated into PCL, both CA and rCA altered fiber morphology, crystallinity, and mechanical performance in a spinning process-dependent manner. Electrospinning produced uniform fibrous films with average diameters around 0.90-0.98 μm, where cellulose derivatives reduced strength and toughness, though rCA blends retained slightly higher crystallinity (≈ 50 % vs. ≈ 45 % for CA blends) and mechanical performance. Forcespinning yielded less uniform but stiffer films, with rCA-containing systems displaying the highest moduli (> 45 MPa), consistent with enhanced crystalline alignment. Wet-spinning generated continuous filaments with remarkable extensibility in neat PCL (> 440 %), but cellulose incorporation sharply reduced ductility, particularly in CA-based blends. Across all methods, rCA consistently preserved more of PCL’s crystalline structure than CA, moderating the loss of mechanical properties. This research demonstrates the feasibility of converting cotton waste into high-value CA, thus advancing circular economy goals, and integrating it into polymer fiber systems with tunable properties. |
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| Autores principais: | Felgueiras, Helena Prado |
| Assunto: | Acid hydrolysis extraction Cellulose acetate reinforcement Spinning techniques Fiber composites Extração por hidrólise ácida Reforço com acetato de celulose Técnicas de fiação Fibras compósitas Engenharia e Tecnologia::Outras Engenharias e Tecnologias |
| Ano: | 2025 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade do Minho |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho |
| Resumo: | The rapid expansion of global cotton production has intensified concerns over the environmental burden of textile waste. Pre-consumer cotton residues, often discarded during manufacturing, represent a valuable resource for sustainable recycling strategies. This research aimed at extracting cellulose acetate (CA) from cotton textile waste via acid hydrolysis and to assess its potential as a reinforcing agent in polycaprolactone (PCL) fibers produced via electrospinning, forcespinning, and wet-spinning. The extraction process successfully yielded recycled cellulose acetate (rCA) with a degree of substitution of 2.61 ± 0.17, comparable to commercial CA (2.7-3.0). Chemical analyses confirmed that the acetylated cellulose structure was preserved, even though rCA showed a higher content of hydroxyl groups compared with the commercial material. Solvent recovery trials demonstrated that > 80 % acetic acid and water could be successfully reintegrated into the extraction process, reinforcing its circular and resource-efficient potential. When incorporated into PCL, both CA and rCA altered fiber morphology, crystallinity, and mechanical performance in a spinning process-dependent manner. Electrospinning produced uniform fibrous films with average diameters around 0.90-0.98 μm, where cellulose derivatives reduced strength and toughness, though rCA blends retained slightly higher crystallinity (≈ 50 % vs. ≈ 45 % for CA blends) and mechanical performance. Forcespinning yielded less uniform but stiffer films, with rCA-containing systems displaying the highest moduli (> 45 MPa), consistent with enhanced crystalline alignment. Wet-spinning generated continuous filaments with remarkable extensibility in neat PCL (> 440 %), but cellulose incorporation sharply reduced ductility, particularly in CA-based blends. Across all methods, rCA consistently preserved more of PCL’s crystalline structure than CA, moderating the loss of mechanical properties. This research demonstrates the feasibility of converting cotton waste into high-value CA, thus advancing circular economy goals, and integrating it into polymer fiber systems with tunable properties. |
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