Elucidating the Opportunities and Challenges for Nanocellulose Spinning

Man-made continuous fibers play an essential role in society today. With the increase in global sustainability challenges, there is a broad spectrum of societal needs where the development of advanced biobased fibers could provide means to address the challenges. Biobased regenerated fibers, produced from dissolved cellulose are widely used today for clothes, upholstery, and linens. With new developments in the area of advanced biobased fibers, it would be possible to compete with high-performance synthetic fibers such as glass fibers and carbon fibers as well as to provide unique functionalities. One possible development is to fabricate fibers by spinning filaments from nanocellulose, Nature's nanoscale high-performance building block, which will require detailed insights into nanoscale assembly mechanisms during spinning, as well as knowledge regarding possible functionalization. If successful, this could result in a new class of man-made biobased fibers. This work aims to identify the progress made in the field of spinning of nanocellulose filaments, as well as outline necessary steps for efficient fabrication of such nanocellulose-based filaments with controlled and predictable properties.