Rheology and microstructure of aqueous suspensions of nanocrystalline cellulose rods

Nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) is a negatively charged rod-like colloid obtained from the hydrolysis of plant material. It is thus expected that NCC suspensions display a rich set of phase behaviour with salt and pH because of its anisotropic shape and electrical double layer that gives rise to liquid crystallinity and self-assembly respectively. It should thus be possible to tune the rheological properties of NCC suspensions for a wide variety of end-use applications.

Rheology and structural analysis techniques are used to characterise surface-sulphated NCC suspensions as a function of pH, salinity (NaCl) and NCC concentration. Structural techniques include atomic force microscopy, Zeta potential, dynamic light scattering, and scanning electron microscopy.

A phase diagram is developed based on the structure-rheology measurements showing various states of NCC that form as a function of salt and NCC concentration, which go well beyond those previously reported. This extended range of conditions reveals regions where the suspension is a viscous fluid and viscoelastic soft solid, as well as regions of instability that is suggested to arise when there is sufficient salt to reduce the electrical double layer (as explained qualitatively using DLVO theory) but insufficient NCC to form a load bearing network.