Cellulose nanofibers (CNF) forms strong and stiff films but the toughness of the films needs to be improved if foldable applications are of interest. Preliminary results have shown that the use of plasticizers can increase the toughness of cellulose nanofiber composites. Investigated in this study is the mechanism behind this effect. Different plasticizers with different molecular weights are used to improve the flexibility of the cellulose nanofiber films. Cellulose nanofiber suspensions with varied plasticizer contents are prepared and the films are produced by vacuum filtering and pressing. The toughening effect of the used plasticizers on the CNF films is studied using tensile and falling weight impact testing. This toughening is related to the film morphology using high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM) and to the individual CNF surface using atomic force microscopy (AFM).

Toughening of cellulose nanofiber films

247th National Meeting (2014)

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