Green synthesis of cellulosic nanofiber in enset woven fabric structures via enzyme treatment and mechanical hammering

Abstract

The rapid development of technology in textile industries has been improving textile finishing properties such as durability, water replants and breathability. Enset is effectively un-utilized agro-waste fiber composed of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, which are resemblance to banana fibers. This paper focused on the utilization of enset waste materials for the production of nano fiber. Enset nano fiber (ENF) was fabricated by defibrillation of raw fibers from the surface of enset woven fabrics into micro and nano-scale fibers by α-amylase enzyme treatment and then mechanical hammering. Instead of sandwiching the nanofiber mats between conventional woven fabrics, in this research work, nanofiber mats were manufactured on the surface of the conventional woven fabrics. This top-down nanofabrication approach is simple, cost-effective and environmentally friendly nanofiber manufacturing technique from the surface of woven fabric structures. Fiber characterization was done by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The surface area, pore size and pore volume of enset nano fiber was analyzed by brunauer, emmett and teller (BET). The test results revealed that nano fiber fabrication was significantly affected by the used enzyme concentration and applied mechanical power. Enset micro fiber was formed when 10 % (w/v) concentration of α-amylase enzymatic treatment was applied while enset nano fibers were formed when the enzyme concentration was increased to 15% - 20 % (w/v). The FTIR results revealed that hemicellulose and lignin were effectively removed and fine fibers were defibrillated from the crystal structure of enset woven fabrics. The SEM microscopic image also confirmed the formation of the enset nano fiber ranges from 660nm-63 nm.