Direct organic acid-catalyzed polyester derivatization of lignocellulosic material

A simple direct catalytic ring-opening polymerization (ROP) from thermomechnical pulp of Norway spruce has been developed. The ROP was based on the mild organic acid-catalyzed bulk ROP of epsilon-caprolactone (epsilon-CL) with the hydroxyl groups of lignocellulosic paper as the initiator. This novel organic acid-catalyzed heterogeneous derivatization of solid-lignocellulose provides an alternative route to production Of derivatized fibers from renewable resources, such as wood pulp. The metal-free organic acid catalyzed lignocellulose derivatization method presented here was operationally simple and environmentally friendly, and employed inexpensive and nontoxic chemicals. The furnished poly(F-caprolactone) (PCL) and polyester-derivatized lignocellulose was characterized by FT-IR, H-1 and C-13-NMR, MALDI-TOF mass spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Moreover, the lignocellutose-PCL product was analyzed for contact angle and water adsorption