EXTRACTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF CELLULOSE AND MICROCRYSTALLINE CELLULOSE (MCC) FROM Marantochloa cuspidata LEAVES

Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) from Marantochloa cuspidata leaves were isolated and characterized. The physicochemical properties of the leaves were investigated. The functional groups analyses were carried out using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy and the crystalline structure were investigated using X-ray Diffraction (XRD). The morphology and thermal stabilities were investigated using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) respectively. The moisture content of the leaves was 7.16± 0.12%. From FTIR, the spectra showed that the hemicelluloses and lignin were removed from the extracted cellulose. The peaks at 1733cm in the spectra of M. cuspidata leaves which were attributed to C = O stretching and C–O out-of plane stretching vibration of the hemicelluloses and lignin disappeared in the spectra of cellulose and MCC. XRD showed that the MCC produced is cellulose I polymorph. The SEM structures showed the microfibrils of the extracts to be crystallites. Cellulose and MCC were shown to have good thermal stability with a degradation temperature of 250oC and 260oC respectively. Keywords: Microcrystalline cellulose, Marantochloa cuspidata, physicochemical properties FTIR, XRD, SEM, TGA.