Rheological peculiarities of microcrystalline cellulose gels

Rheological properties of MCC hydro- and alcogels have been studied. MCC gels were obtained by way of dispersing in water, ethyl alcohol and propyl alcohol media the wood pulp destructed to the levelling-off degree of polymerization (LODP) of cellulose by a method developed by us. At a sufficiently high cellulose concentration which was dependent on the liquid medium, MCC gels with rheological properties typical for liquid crystalline polymers (flow curves with three characteristic regions, viscosity concentrations curves with a local maximum, etc.) were obtained. These properties are more pronounced for hydrogels. MCC hydrogels are characterized also by a higher liquid phase retention volume (~ 380%), which is an important characteristic of a stable gel. For MCC alcogels, it makes up 40-65%. Inferior properties of MCC alcogels are connected with the chemical structure of alcohol molecules which, as compared to water molecules, are less favourable for bonds formation among cellulose microcrystallites and the liquid medium.