Wasteland plants can be prospected as potential source of commercially important cellulose

Abstract

Being present in all plants, cellulose is the most abundantly found natural polymer on earth and is extensively used for various commercial purposes. Conventional sources of commercial cellulose include the forest woods, fibres like cotton, jute, flax, hemp, sisal etc. and agricultural by-products like rice husk, sugarcane bagasse etc. However, the potential of the wasteland plants, which produce considerable biomass despite of various environmental stresses, has not been explored adequately. In this study, we have extracted and characterized cellulose from five wasteland plants viz. Senna alata, Calotropis gigantea, Solanum torvum, Solanum myriacanthum and Clerodendrum infortunatum, which thrive well under adverse environmental conditions and grow naturally and abundantly in wastelands. Results from FTIR and XRD analyses reveal that the extracted cellulose fibres, with a crystallinity index ranging from almost 45 - 66%, are at par with cellulose from other non-conventional sources that are used in commercial and pharmaceutical applications and to obtain various cellulose derivatives of commercial importance. This work demonstrates novel information on wasteland plants as potential and sustainable options as sources of cellulose to reduce the burden on natural forests, imposed for collection of woods to produce commercial cellulose.