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The heterogeneous character of the dilute acid hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose
Author(s) -
Wood Barry F.,
Conner Anthony H.,
Hill Charles G.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.1989.070370520
Subject(s) - cellulose , hydrolysis , degree of polymerization , polymer chemistry , acid hydrolysis , cellulosic ethanol , recrystallization (geology) , materials science , chemical engineering , chemistry , polymerization , organic chemistry , polymer , paleontology , biology , engineering
The end‐attack model proposed by Sharples [ Trans. Faraday Soc. , 53 , 1003 (1957)] for the dilute acid hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose was tested using the results from the size‐exclusion chromatographic analysis of samples of crystalline cellulose I and cellulose II hydrolyzed in 6.1 N HCl at 107°C. The differential number distribution of the molecular weight of hydrolyzed cellulose was found to be approximately exponential, a result which is consistent with the end‐attack model. Differences in the rates of hydrolysis of cellulosic materials appear to arise from differences in both the degree of polymerization and the microstructure of hydrolyzed cellulose. Evidence is also presented which suggests that the recrystallization upon hydrolysis results in part from the lateral accretion of chains which are cleaved during the hydrolysis of amorphous regions in the cellulose microfibrils.