Kinetics of the oxidation of cotton with hypochlorite in the pH range 5–10

The rate of consumption of oxygen by cotton and cottom cellulose from solutions of hypochlorite in the pH range 5–10 has been studied. Kinetic plots were obtained either by periodically titrating aliquots or by automatically recording the amount of alkali required to keep the pH constant. In the case of pure cotton cellulose the plots are linear, whereas in the case of cotton the plots consist of two parts, an initial, rapid oxidation of the impurities followed by a slower, linear oxidation of the cellulose. The dependence of the rate of oxidation on the pH may be expressed by: which also accounts for the dependence of the rate on the initial concentration of oxidant. A mechanism is suggested in terms of the free‐radical OH and Cl2OOH.