Renewable bulk material made with nanocellulose and its engineering properties (Conference Presentation)

Nanocellulose has a great potential as a renewable material due to its high mechanical strength, high Young’s modulus, low density and eco-friendliness. Once a bulk material is made with it, then the bulk material made with nanocellulose can be a renewable bulk material, which is eco-friendly, lightweight and strong. This paper aims at testing the feasibility bulk material processing by using nanocellulose, specifically cellulose nanocrystal (CNC). The fabrication is carried out through steam with high temperature and high pressure to form hydrogen bonds between CNCs, followed by heat and pressure molding. Crystalline structures of the prepared bulk materials are investigated by using X-ray diffraction and morphology and mechanical properties are investigated by using scanning electron microscope and dynamic mechanical analysis. Also, machining behavior for the nanocellulose bulk material is tested by using end mill to see its manufacturing possibility. In addition, the surface roughness is measured by using optical surface profiler with endmill machining part. Machining heat generation is investigated by thermal imaging camera between endmill tool and machined surface of the sample.