Cellulose single crystals

An attempt was made to crystallize cellulose II by hydrolyzing cellulose acetate (DP = 345) in dilute acetic acid medium. Though the cellulose chains are known to be less flexible, they exhibit a crystal structure similar to that obtained for flexible synthetic polymers. The effects of temperature and of acetic acid concentration on the crystal structure were studied. It was shown that cellulose could be crystallized in a variety of structural features if the strong intermolecular hydrogen bonding, which under ordinary circumstances dominates the flexibility of the backbone, is avoided by appropriate experimental conditions.