Study on the effects of reaction conditions on carboxymethyl cellulose nonwoven manufactured by wet-laid process

Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) has been used in medical area by virtue of their high water absorption property, bio-degradability, and biocompatibility. It has been mainly used as forms of gel, powder, and film due to the limitation in processability on textile structures, especially nonwoven. In this study we demonstrated wet-laid nonwoven process for viscose rayon and carboxymethylation to produce CMC nonwoven. The effects of process conditions, such as reaction time and amount of monochloroacetic acid (MCA) in carboxymethylation, were investigated in terms of the degree of substitution (DS), morphological properties and mechanical properties of the CMC nonwoven. Molar ratio of MCA to cellulose and etherification time played important roles in determining characteristics of CMC nonwoven. As DS increased, strength was improved while elongation decreased. Gel blocking behavior of CMC nonwoven with higher DS indicated the applicability of CMC nonwoven as wound dressing and adhesion prevention materials.