Dissolution of Absorbent Cotton in Ionic Liquid and Characterization of the Regenerated Cellulose

Dissolution of absorbent cotton (DP above 4000) using ionic liquids as solvent and regeneration was investigated. The results show that 1-ally-3-methylimidazolium chloride (AMIMCl) was a good solvent to dissolve absorbent cotton and a solution of 3 wt% can be reached in 18 min at 120°C. Besides, as the dissolving temperature increased the time needed for the cotton linters to dissolve decreased. The physic-chemical properties of the regenerated cellulose films were also characterized by XRD, FTIR and TGA analysis.