Rezumat
CZU 676.16:537.528
DOI https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3747835
The producing of cellulose from non-woody plant materials using the electric discharge method was investigated using flax fiber as the object. The adaptation of the electric-discharge method of the material treatment to the solution of the problem of delignification and the production of cellulose from the fibers of annual plants is considered. The conditions are described when an electric discharge in water is accompanied by a complex of phenomena characteristic of cavitation processes in a liquid. Energy operating rates and main elements of engineering procedures for electric-discharge treatment of flax fiber are experimentally established. Their compliance allows the yield of α-cellulose to be about 70–83%. It was experimentally revealed that increasing the energy in a single electric-discharge pulse above 125 J is not advisable from the point of view of the maximal content of α-cellulose. It was also experimentally shown that in order to get the maximal yield of α-cellulose, preliminary soaking of flax fiber is necessary. Non-using of chemical reagents for delignification of flax fiber during the electric discharge method makes it a promising alternative to environmentally unsafe existing ones.
Keywords: flax fiber, delignification, α-cellulose, electric-discharge volume cavitation.