Characterization of tri-o-methylcellulose by one- and two-dimensional NMR methods

Tri-O-methylcellulose was prepared from partially O-methylated cellulose and its chemical shifts (¹H and ¹³C), and proton coupling constants were assigned using the following NMR methods: (1) One-dimensional ¹H and ¹³C spectra of the title compound were used to assign functional groups and to compare with literature data; (2) double quantum filtered proton–proton correlation spectroscopy (¹H, ¹H DQF-COSY) was used to assign the chemical shifts of the network of 7 protons in the anhydroglucose portion of the repeat unit; (3) the heteronuclear single-quantum coherence (HSQC) spectrum was used to establish connectivities between the bonded protons and carbons; (4) the heteronuclear multiple-bond correlation (HMBC) spectrum was used to connect the hydrogens of the methyl ethers to their respective sugar carbons; (5) the combination of HSQC and HMBC spectra was used to assign the ¹³C shifts of the methyl ethers; (6) all spectra were used in combination to verify the assigned chemical shifts; (7) first-order proton coupling constants data (J_H,H in Hz) were obtained from the resolution-enhanced proton spectra. The NMR spectra of tri-O-methylcellulose and other cellulose ethers do not resemble the spectra of similarly substituted cellobioses. Although the ¹H and ¹³C shifts and coupling constants of 2,3,6-tri-O-methylcellulose closely resemble those of methyl tetra-O-methyl-β-D -glucoside, there are differences with regard to the chemical shifts and the order of appearances of the resonating nuclei of the methyl ether appendages and the proton at position 4 in the pyranose ring. H4 in tri-O-methylcellulose is deshielded by the acetal system comprising the β-1→4 linkage, and it resonates downfield. H4 in the permethylated glucoside is not as deshielded by the equitorial O-methyl group at C4, and it resonates upfield. The order of appearance of the ¹H and ¹³C resonances in the spectra of the tri-O-methylcellulose repeat unit (from upfield to downfield) are H2 < H3 < H5 < H6a < H3a < H2a < pro R H6B < H4 < pro S H6A ≪ H1 and C6a < C3a < C2a < C6 < C5 < C4 < C2 < C3 ≪ C1, respectively. Close examination of the pyranose ring coupling constants of the repeat unit in tri-O-methylcellulose supports the ⁴C₁ arrangement of the glucopyranose ring. Examination of the proton coupling constants about the C5-C6 bond (J_5,6A and J_5,6B) in the nuclear Overhauser effect difference spectra revealed that the C6 O-methyl group is predominantly in the gauche gauche conformation about the C5-C6 bond for the polymer in solution. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.* J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 4019–4032, 1999     

Use of Sucrose‐based Epoxy ­Formulations and Cellulosic Fibers in ­the Design,Preparation, and Screening ­of New Composite Insulation Materials

Non‐woven composite insulation materials were generated from cotton, kenaf, jute, polyester, polypropylene, sucrose‐based epoxy formulations, and aluminum foil. The needlepunched fiber batts were rendered flame resistant by use of inorganic reagents and urea. To discover suitable epoxy formulations to bind the cellulose fibers to themselves or to dissimilar surfaces and to make flexible composites, a comparison of the performance of the known epoxy allyl sucroses (EAS), epoxy crotyl sucroses (ECS), and diglycidyl ether of bisphenol‐A (DGEBA) was made. The epoxies were cured with commercial diethylenetriamine (DETA), and UNIREZs‐2142 and 2355®, to discover a formulation with the following characteristics: (a) low cure temperature; (b) low Young's moduli and glass transition temperatures of cured thermosets for flexible composites; (c) ample bond strength between the fabric and the bonded surfaces; and (d) non‐cytotoxicity and non‐mutagenicity of the epoxies. Based on results following these criteria, EAS was selected, and the formulation comprising EAS and UNIREZ‐2355® was deemed suitable to bind fiber batts to surfaces of any type and geometry. ASTM guidelines were used to construct a wooden frame cube (heat box) for the simultaneous rapid screening of cellulosic fiber batts and composites. The new materials were compared against R‐19 fiberglass insulation for their ability to resist heat flow (denoted by relative R‐values) and time taken to approach thermal equilibrium. Plain non‐woven cellulosic fiber batts showed relative R‐values of 4.0 °F ft² hr/Btu per inch thickness (0.27 K m²/W per cm), and took about 2 hr to establish equilibrium heat flow. Commercial fiberglass batts showed relative R‐values­of 2.2 per in (0.15 per cm) and took 1 hr to attain equilibrium heat flow. When 6.25 in (15.9 cm) thick batts of fiberglass were needle punched to a thickness of 1 in (2.54 cm), relative R‐values and equilibrium heat flow times were 4.0 per in (0.27 per cm) and 2 hr, respectively. This denoted that the densities and thermal resistances of non‐conducting materials are raised concurrently. Anisotropic heat flow behavior was observed in cellulosic fiber composites with aluminum foil (shiny side out) bonded on one side. It depended upon whether the aluminum foil side or the fibers side faced the heat source. In the latter orientation the aluminum acted as a heat sink, and in the former orientation the foil acted as a poor heat reflector. The poor performance of these insulation composites was related to the fact that aluminum was directly bonded to the fiber batts and was acting as a heat conductor. When cellulose fiber shims (spacers) were placed between the fiber batts and the aluminum foil, the R‐values of the composites were comparable to those of plain batts but the times taken to approach thermal equilibrium increased to >3 hr, denoting that the foil was acting more as a reflector and less as a conductor. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis and NMR characterization of 6‐Phenyl‐6‐deoxy‐2,3‐di‐O‐methylcellulose

Cellulose ( 1 ) was converted for the first time to 6‐phenyl‐6‐deoxy‐2,3‐di‐O‐methylcellulose ( 6 ) in 33% overall yield. Intermediates in the five‐step conversion of 1 to­ 6 were: 6‐O‐tritylcellulose ( 2 ), 6‐O‐trityl‐2,3‐di‐O‐methylcellulose ( 3 ), 2,3‐di‐O‐methylcellulose ( 4 ); and 6‐bromo‐6‐deoxy‐2,3‐di‐O‐methylcellulose ( 5 ). Elemental and quantitative carbon‐13 analyses were concurrently used to verify and confirm the degrees of substitution in each new polymer. Gel permeation chromotography (GPC) data were generated to monitor the changes in molecular weight (DP_w) as the synthesis progressed, and the compound average decrease in cellulose DP_w was ～ 27%. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to characterize the decomposition of all polymers. The degradation temperatures ( °C) and percent char at 500 °C of cellulose derivatives 2 to 6 were 308.6 and 6.3%, 227.6 °C and 9.7%, 273.9 °C and 30.2%, 200.4 °C and 25.6%, and 207.2 °C and 27.0%, respectively. The glass transition temperature (T_g) of­6‐O‐tritylcellulose by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) occurred at 126.7 °C and the modulus (E′, Pa) dropped 8.9 fold in the transition from ?150 °C to + 180 °C (6.6 × 10⁹ to 7.4 × 10⁸ Pa). Modulus at 20 °C was 3.26 × 10⁹ Pa. Complete proton and carbon‐13 chemical shift assignments of the repeating unit of the title polymer were made by a combination of the HMQC and COSY NMR methods. Ultimate non‐destructive proof of carbon–carbon bond formation at C6 of the anhydroglucose moiety was established by generating correlations between resonances of CH₂6 (anhydroglucose) and C1′, H2′, and H6′ of the attached aryl ring using the heteronuclear multiple‐bond correlation (HMBC) method. In this study, we achieved three major objectives: (a) new methodologies for the chemical modification of cellulose were developed; (b) new cellulose derivatives were designed, prepared and characterized; (c) unequivocal structural proof for carbon–carbon bond formation with cellulose was derived non‐destructively by use of one‐ and two‐dimensional NMR methods. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Water absorbancy of never‐dried cotton fibers

Although neverdried cotton (NDC) fiber has been known to exhibit extremely high water absorbency, the reason for this has not yet been elucidated. In this study, changes in water absorbency, bound water content as revealed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), cellulose content and fiber crosssection observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for NDC fibers at several stages of development (27–57 days postanthesis (DPA)) were investigated. It was found that the bound water content (27g/l00g) of NDC fibers at 50DPA is much smaller than that (40–73g/l00g) for fibers at 27–43DPA. Cellulose synthesis takes place within the cotton boll, a closed watercontaining system. Our results are rationalized by assuming that these water molecules are preventing the formation of intermolecular hydrogen bonds between the cellulose molecules as they are being formed. Other explanations for our experimental findings are: (i) the coexistence of precursors of cellulose and components, such as (1,3);glucans, that are very hydrophilic, and (ii) the presence in each NDC fiber of a prominent lumen that acts as a capillary system for water.     

The physical and NMR characterizations of allyl‐ and crotylcelluloses

Tri‐O‐allylcellulose (degree of polymerization, DP ∼112) was prepared in ∼91% yield, and tri‐O‐crotylcellulose (DP ∼138) was prepared in ∼56% yield from microcrystalline cellulose (DP ∼172, and polydispersity index, PDI ∼1.95) using modified literature methods. Number‐average molecular weight (M_n = 31,600), weight‐average molecular weight (M_w = 191,800), and PDI = 6.07 data suggested that tri‐O‐allylcellulose may be crosslinking in air to generate branched chains. The polymer was stabilized with 100 ppm butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT). The material without BHT experienced glass transition (T_g, differential‐scanning calorimetry, DSC) between −2 and +3 °C, crosslinked beyond 100 °C, and degraded at 298.6 °C (by thermogravimetric analysis, TGA). M_n (45,100), M_w (118,200), PDI (2.62), and thermal data (T_g − 5 to +3 °C, melting point 185.8 °C, recrystallization 168.9 °C, and degradation 343.6 °C) on tri‐O‐crotylcellulose suggested that the polymer was formed with about the same polydispersity as the starting material and is heat stable. While allylcellulose generated continuous flexible yellow films by solution casting, crotylcellulose precipitated from solution as brittle white flakes. Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) data on allylcellulose films (T_g − 29.1 °C, Young's modulus 5.81 × 10⁸ Pa) suggest that the material is tough and flexible at room temperature. All ¹H and ¹³C resonances in the NMR spectra were identified and assigned using the following methods: Double‐quantum filter correlation spectroscopy (DQF COSY) was used to assign the network of seven protons in the anhydroglucose portion of the repeat unit. The proton assignments were verified and confirmed by total correlation spectroscopy (TOCSY). A combination of heteronuclear single‐quantum coherence (HSQC) and ¹³C spectroscopies were used to identify all bonded carbon–hydrogen pairs in the anhydroglucose portion of the repeat unit, and assign the carbon nuclei chemical shift values. Heteronuclear multiple bond correlation (HMBC) spectroscopy was used to connect the resonances of methines and methylenes at positions 2, 3, and 6 to the methylene resonances of the allyl ethers. TOCSY was used again to identify the fifteen ¹H resonances in the three pendant allyl groups. Finally, a combination of HSQC, HMBC, and ¹³C spectroscopies were used to identify each carbon in the allyl pendants at 2, 3, and 6. Because of line broadening and signal overlap, we were unable to identify the conformational arrangement about the C5 and C6 bond in tri‐O‐allyl‐ and tri‐O‐crotylcelluloses. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 1889–1902, 2000     

Effect of a nonionic surfactant on Trichoderma cellulase treatments of regenerated cellulose and cotton yarns

It has been shown that some surfactants affect the hydrolysis of cellulose by cellulase. In this study, the effect of the surfactant Tween 20 on the hydrolysis of different cellulosic fibers was investigated and related to the cellulose fiber structure. It was found that this non-ionic surfactant enhanced the enzymatic saccharification of highly crystalline cellulosics such as Avicel, Tencel and cotton but not of cuprammonium rayon. The enhanced saccha-rification effected by the surfactant is attributed to inhibition of non-productive sorption of the endoglucanase of the cellulose surface which gives greater access to the cellulose chain ends by the exoglucanase. Although all three fibers lost tensile strength as a result of the enzymatic treatment, no further decrease was effected by the presence of the surfactant.