Abstract
Considering its widespread usage in various fields, such as food, pharmaceutical, medical, cosmetic and polymer composites industries, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is becoming impellent due to increasing demand of alternatives to non-renewable and scarce fossil materials. Although it still suffers from some drawbacks, MCC has recently gained more interest owing to its renewability, non-toxicity, economic value, biodegradability, high mechanical properties, high surface area and biocompatibility. New sources, new isolation processes, and new treatments are currently under development to satisfy the increasing demand of producing new types of MCC-based materials on an industrial scale. Therefore, this review assembles the current knowledge on the isolation of MCC from different sources using various procedures, its characterization, and its application in bio-composites. Challenges and future opportunities of MCC-based composites are discussed as well as obstacles remaining for their extensive uses.
Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Author information
- 1UER Chimie Appliquée, Ecole Militaire Polytechnique, BP 17, Bordj El-Bahri, Algiers, Algeria. Electronic address: djalaltrache@gmail.com.
- 2Lignocellulosic Research Group, School of Chemical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Penang, Malaysia.
- 3School of Distance Education, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Penang, Malaysia.
- 4School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Penang, Malaysia.
- 5School of Industrial Technology, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Minden, Penang, Malaysia; Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, Nigeria.