Comparative study of aramid nanofiber (ANF) and cellulose nanofiber (CNF)

Cellulose nanofiber (CNF) has faced challenges toward advanced applications due to the poor water resistance, wet strength, and poor thermal stability. The fabrication methods, morphologies and dispersibility between CNF and aramid nanofiber (ANF) were compared. Then the mechanical strength, especially the retention of wet strength (RWS), optical property, UV shielding, wettability and thermal stability of CNF and ANF nanopapers were further investigated. The results show that ANF and ANF nanopaper have significant advantages in dispersibility, water resistance, wet strength, thermal stability and UV-blocking ability over the CNF and CNF nanopaper. Especially the RWS of ANF nanopaper reached ˜82.5%, which notably exceeded the CNF nanopaper of 1.1%. This work demonstrates that the ANF could be an ideal alternative to CNF for advanced nanocomposites. Transparent, flexible, ultra-strong ANF nanopaper with favorable water resistance and wet strength, as well as good UV-blocking property shows great potential in variety of advanced applications.