Lakovaara Matias, Sirviö Juho Antti, Sliz Rafal, Wang Shubo, Liimatainen Henrikki
Fiber and Particle Engineering Research Unit, University of Oulu, 90014 Oulu, Finland.
Optoelectronics and Measurement Techniques Unit, University of Oulu, 90014 Oulu, Finland.
Biomacromolecules. 2025 Jan 13;26(1):644-653. doi: 10.1021/acs.biomac.4c01463. Epub 2024 Dec 13.
Cellulose-nanomaterial-derived films are promising platforms for engineering advanced substrates for printed electronics. However, they are highly susceptible to water and humidity, which limit their wide application. To overcome these drawbacks, cellulose nanoworms (distinct hydrophobized cellulose nanomaterials) were introduced in this study as sustainable coatings to enhance the water resistance of cellulose nanofiber (CNF) films. Alcogels of nanoworms, produced via ethanol-induced swelling and ultrasonication of a cellulose pulp esterified in a deep eutectic solvent, form a dense and transparent coating on the CNF films, significantly inhibiting their water absorption and improving their surface smoothness. Furthermore, the resulting coated CNF films exhibited enhanced hydrophobicity with improved wet mechanical properties and lower water vapor permeability. In addition, the results of the ink-printing tests revealed that the coated films partially or completely inhibited ink removal. Thus, this study demonstrated that cellulose nanoworm coatings provide a promising approach to overcome the moisture sensitivity of CNF films.
纤维素纳米材料衍生的薄膜是用于制造印刷电子产品先进基板的有前途的平台。然而，它们对水和湿度高度敏感，这限制了它们的广泛应用。为了克服这些缺点，本研究引入了纤维素纳米蠕虫（独特的疏水化纤维素纳米材料）作为可持续涂层，以提高纤维素纳米纤维（CNF）薄膜的耐水性。通过乙醇诱导在深共熔溶剂中酯化的纤维素纸浆溶胀和超声处理制备的纳米蠕虫醇凝胶，在CNF薄膜上形成致密且透明的涂层，显著抑制其吸水并改善其表面光滑度。此外，所得的涂覆CNF薄膜表现出增强的疏水性，具有改善的湿机械性能和较低的水蒸气透过率。此外，油墨印刷测试结果表明，涂覆的薄膜部分或完全抑制了油墨去除。因此，本研究表明纤维素纳米蠕虫涂层为克服CNF薄膜的湿度敏感性提供了一种有前途的方法。
