Ramjee Subramanian

Potential Use of Micro- and Nanofibrillated Cellulose Composites Exemplified by Paper

Naturally abundant, biodegradable, and sustainable plant and wood fibres are composed of smaller and progressively mechanically stronger entities. These smaller structural load-bearing cellulosic fibrils, termed as micro- and nanocellulosic fibrils, can be separated by defibrillating the pulp fibres with either mechanical, chemical, enzymatic, and ultrasound sonication methods or a combination of these treatments. Engineered biopolymer, like cellulosic fibrils, and inorganic mineral composite structures have the potential to create new material properties and applications. This chapter deals with the production, characterisation, and application of cellulosic fibril-precipitated calcium carbonate structures in printing and writing paper. We enunciate a novel composite paper consisting of cellulosic fibrils and precipitated calcium carbonate as the backbone structure and reinforced with a minimal fraction of long fibres. However, recent research investigations show that cellulosic fibrils and their composites find wide application across different fields of manufacturing such as polymers and plastics, medicine, construction, and automotive industries.