Preparation of cellulose II and IIII films by allomorphic conversion of bacterial cellulose I pellicles

The structural changes resulting from the conversion of native cellulose I (Cel I) into allomorphs II (Cel II) and IIII (Cel IIII) have usually been studied using powder samples from plant or algal cellulose. In this work, the conversion of Cel I into Cel II and Cel IIII was performed on bacterial cellulose films without any mechanical disruption. The surface texture of the films was observed by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and the morphology of the constituting cellulose ribbons, by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The structural changes were characterized using solid-state NMR spectroscopy as well as X-ray and electron diffraction. The allomorphic change into Cel II and Cel IIII resulted in films with different crystallinity, roughness and hydrophobic/hydrophilicity surface and the films remained intact during all process of allomorphic conversion.