Extraction of cellulose from oil palm trunk (opt) by water treated fibre process for bioplastic development

This study summarized the research on the Extraction of Cellulose from Oil Palm Trunk by Water Treated Fibre Process for the Bioplastic Development as cellulose is a renewable material. Cellulose was chosen to replace synthetic polymers in order to avoid environmental issues occurred. The use of biodegradable polymer like PVA and cellulose can reduce the environmental impact which easy to decompose. However, cellulose need to be reinforced with other matrix materials with high performance of synthetic polymers such as polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) in order to improves mechanical properties. The objectives of this study were to prepare and characterize the cellulose extracted from OPT fibre and to produce and characterize biodegradable thin film from cellulose. Firstly, the OPT fibre was being washed with the distilled water to remove the impurities and was dried in the oven for 24 h at 110 °C to ensure the maximum drying. Next, the OPT fibre was undergo the chemical treatment to extract the cellulose. Firstly, the OPT fibre was undergo hot water treated fibre process to remove the extractive such as wax from the OPT fibre. Next, the OPT fibre was undergo the bleaching process to remove the hemicellulose that present in the fibre. Sodium chlorite solution was used as the main material with the help of acetic acid to remove the hemicellulose. It is because, the sodium chlorite solution must be in acidic pH to undergo the process. Last but not least, the OPT fibre was undergo the lignin removal by Kraft process. The process used strong alkaline material, potassium chloride (KOH). The 6 wt. % KOH solution was prepared and the fibre was soaked in the solution for 20 min. This is because, the lignin only dissolve in the alkaline solution. Then the fibre was filtered and dried in the oven and the cellulose fibre was being extracted. Moreover, 10 wt. % of PVA solution and also 25 wt. % glycerine as plasticizer was prepared and being mixed until homogenous. Sample A was prepared by adding 0.5 wt. % of cellulose, Sample B was prepared by adding 1.0 wt. % of cellulose while Sample C was prepared by adding 1.5 wt. % of cellulose. Then, all of the three solution were undergo casting process to get the thin film and were being dried for 48 h. As the result, Sample B has highest percentage of elongation while Sample C has the highest value of Young’s modulus that was 99.572 MPa. The implication of this research was, we can reduce the usage of non-renewable energy such as petroleum. Moreover, can reduce the pollution in the environment because the bio plastic produced from the cellulose can degrade in short period of time.