Aerogel Microspheres from Natural Cellulose Nanofibrils
and Their Application as Cell Culture Scaffold
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Abstract
We demonstrated that
ultralight pure natural aerogel microspheres
can be fabricated using cellulose nanofibrials (CNF) directly. Experimentally,
the CNF aqueous gel droplets, produced by spraying and atomizing through
a steel nozzle, were collected into liquid nitrogen for instant freezing
followed by freeze-drying. The aerogel microspheres are highly porous
with bulk density as low as 0.0018 g cm<sup>–3</sup>. The pore
size of the cellulose aeogel microspheres ranges from nano- to macrometers.
The unique ultralight and high porous structure ensured high moisture
(∼90 g g<sup>–1</sup>) and water uptake capacity (∼100
g g<sup>–1</sup>) of the aerogel microspheres. Covalent cross-linking
between the native nanofibrils and cross-linkers made the aerogel
microspheres very stable even in a harsh environment. The present
study also confirmed this kind of aerogel microspheres from native
cellulose fibers can be used as cell culture scaffold