The hydrolysis and recrystallisation of lyocell and comparative cellulosic fibres in solutions of mineral acid

Regenerated cellulosic fibres undergo a process described as scission-reordering during hydrolysis in solutions of mineral acid. This occurs within disordered polymer regions at lateral crystal interfaces, which are accessible to aqueous agents through the pore spaces and polymer free volume. This process is distinct from that of oligomer-solubilsation, which occurs within disordered polymer regions in series between crystal domains, where no effective template exists for recrystallisation. The degradation of series disorder will have the greatest influence on fibre tensile properties, which fall dramatically even at low levels of hydrolysis. The mechanics of fibrillation are most sensitive to the degradation of lateral disorder, which occurs at a higher rate constant. Soft-touch fabric processing may therefore be possible under conditions where there is a reduced influence on tensile performance. A kinetic model has been proposed to describe the hydrolysis and recrystallisation pathways, which shows that lyocell has longer but thinner crystal domains than viscose or modal fibres, and also a tighter distribution of lateral crystal sizes. Lyocell also has a lower proportion of series disorder and also thinner regions of lateral disorder. This is consistent with the overall greater crystallinity of the original lyocell fibre and the also of the final microscrystalline product

Measurement of light scattering in deep sea

The deep-sea neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea, being prepared by the KM3NET collaboration, will contain thousands of optical sensors to readout. The accurate knowledge of the optical properties of deep-sea water is of great importance for the neutrino event reconstruction process. In this study we describe our progress in designing an experimental setup and studying a method to measure the parameters describing the absorption and scattering characteristics of deep-sea water. Three PMTs will be used to measure in situ the scattered light emitted from six laser diodes in three different wavelengths covering the Cherenkov radiation spectrum. The technique for the evaluation of the parameters is based on Monte Carlo simulations and our results show that we are able to determine these parameters with satisfying precision

Measurement of light scattering in deep sea

The deep-sea neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea, being prepared by the KM3NET collaboration, will contain thousands of optical sensors to readout. The accurate knowledge of the optical properties of deep-sea water is of great importance for the neutrino event reconstruction process. In this study we describe our progress in designing an experimental setup and studying a method to measure the parameters describing the absorption and scattering characteristics of deep-sea water. Three PMTs will be used to measure in situ the scattered light emitted from six laser diodes in three different wavelengths covering the Cherenkov radiation spectrum. The technique for the evaluation of the parameters is based on Monte Carlo simulations and our results show that we are able to determine these parameters with satisfying precision

Measurement of light scattering in deep sea

The deep-sea neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea, being prepared by the KM3NET collaboration, will contain thousands of optical sensors to readout. The accurate knowledge of the optical properties of deep-sea water is of great importance for the neutrino event reconstruction process. In this study we describe our progress in designing an experimental setup and studying a method to measure the parameters describing the absorption and scattering characteristics of deep-sea water. Three PMTs will be used to measure in situ the scattered light emitted from six laser diodes in three different wavelengths covering the Cherenkov radiation spectrum. The technique for the evaluation of the parameters is based on Monte Carlo simulations and our results show that we are able to determine these parameters with satisfying precision

Carbon-13 solid state NMR investigation and modeling of the morphological reorganization in regenerated cellulose fibres induced by controlled acid hydrolysis

CPMAS carbon-13 NMR has been used to follow structural changes affecting regenerated cellulose fibres during hydrolysis by mineral acids. The C4 envelope of regenerated cellulose was deconvoluted into separate peaks, for ordered (crystal), part-ordered (surface) and disordered (non-crystal) polymer, which allowed calculation of average crystal lateral sizes, in good agreement with WAXD data. A geometrical model has been used to describe recrystallisation at lateral crystal faces, occurring within a disordered boundary surrounding the crystal interior. A one-dimensional relaxation-diffusion model has also been constructed, appropriate to the spinodal structure of lyocell. This has provided estimates of proton T1ρ relaxation times for pure crystalline (cellulose II) and non-crystalline cellulose, around 24 and 4.5 ms, respectively, at a 45 kHz B1 field. From the model, crystalline and non-crystalline regions in lyocell are estimated to each be around 2.5 nm thickness for a material of 50% crystallinity, consistent with the 2–3 nm dimensions derived from C4 peak devonvolution

Controlled accessibility Lewis acid catalysed thermal reactions of regenerated cellulosic fibres

A combination of techniques have been used to characterise lyocell regenerated cellulose fibre subjected to low-moisture thermal-catalytic reactions with zinc chloride Lewis acid. Application from non-swelling ethanol reduces catalyst accessibility, but at high temperatures migration takes place through the internal fibre morphology. The extent of chain scission is reduced at lower temperatures, leading to a higher leveling-off degree of polymerisation (LODP). In contrast, application of zinc chloride from water results in a lower LODP, due to the more even distribution of catalyst. The weights of extractable polymer material increase according to two separate rate constants, following established semicrystalline models. A higher Arrhenius activation energy for chain scission is seen for zinc chloride application from ethanol, which may be due to the physical mobilisation of the cellulose polymer at high temperature, associated with a cellulose Tg. This may also aid recrystallisation. Cellulose dehydration endotherms and pyrolysis exotherms are shifted to lower temperature for application of zinc chloride from ethanol compared to water, which may be the result of a higher local concentration of catalyst and a faster reaction onset