Effect of mercerization on the crystallite size and crystallinity index in cellulose from different sources

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Abstract
Native cellulose samples having a wide range of crystallinity and crystallite size were mercerized by treatment with sodium hydroxide. The resultant cellulose II samples showed only a narrow range of crystallinity and an essentially constant crystallite size. For the low-crystallinity samples, crystallinity and crystallite size actually increased on mercerization. These results are in line with the proposal that mercerization involves the mingling of chains from adjacent and antiparallel cellulose I microfibrils to form cellulose II crystals of antiparallel chains.