Open Access

ARTICLE

The Valorization of Poplar Leaves Waste for the Extraction of Cellulose Nanocrystals

Dongwei Shao, Hao Sun, Qi Wang, Ping Han, Yiwei Liu, Jiyi Luan, Lin Jia, Qiang He, Bo Cui^*
College of Mechanical Engineering, Jiamusi University, Jiamusi, 154007, China
* Corresponding Author: Bo Cui. Email:
(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Sustainable Development and Multifunctional Application of Cellulose Composites)

Journal of Polymer Materials https://doi.org/10.32604/jpm.2026.074541

Received 13 October 2025; Accepted 06 January 2026; Published online 21 January 2026

Abstract

The valorization of agricultural waste into high-value nanomaterials is crucial for advancing sustainable biorefineries. This study presents an efficient approach for extracting carboxylated cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) from poplar leaf waste (PL), an abundant and underutilized biomass. The process involved alkaline treatment and hydrogen peroxide bleaching to purify cellulose (PL-CEL), followed by sequential periodate-chlorite oxidation to produce dicarboxylic cellulose nanocrystals (PL-CNCs). The resulting nanocrystals were comprehensively characterized using compositional analysis, XRD, FTIR, TEM, TGA, and zeta potential measurements. XRD analysis confirmed a high crystallinity index of 82% for PL-CEL, which decreased to 72.2% after oxidation due to the introduction of carboxyl groups. FTIR spectra revealed a prominent peak at 1720 cm⁻¹, confirming successful carboxylation. TEM images showed rod-like nanocrystals with an average length of 271.22 nm and width of 14.68 nm, while conductometric titration indicated a carboxyl content of 1.9 mmol/g. The PL-CNCs exhibited good colloidal stability with a zeta potential of –30.2 mV at pH 7.0. TGA demonstrated moderate thermal stability with enhanced char formation. This work highlights a green and scalable route for converting poplar leaf waste into functional nanocellulose, suitable for applications in composites, adsorption, and sustainable materials. The novelty of this study lies in the pioneering use of poplar leaf waste combined with a sequential periodate-chlorite oxidation to sustainably produce carboxylated CNCs with enhanced functionality.

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Keywords

Poplar leaves; sequential oxidation; cellulose nanocrystals; carboxylation; waste valorization

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