Giant panda feces: potential raw material in preparation of nitrocellulose for propellants

It is highly anticipated to explore low-priced raw materials for preparing nitrocellulose (NC). The use of low-priced raw materials reduces environmental pollution while utilizing waste. In this paper, it is fascinating to prepare NC for propellants based on giant panda feces. The synthesis of NC based on giant panda feces and bitter bamboo stems as raw materials were labeled as P-NC and B-NC, respectively. Compared with cotton-based NC (NC12.5%), P-NC has certain advantages in decomposition heat, burning flame and speed, and mechanical properties. However, this advantage is very slight. The gastrointestinal digestion of giant pandas shortens the time for extracting alpha-cellulose. P-NC and B-NC are very similar in structure and properties, except that P-NC maintains a higher degree of crystallinity. The results show that P-NC can replace cotton-based NC in terms of performance for propellants. It should be emphasized that this paper is based on the use of animal excrement, which not only protects the environment and saves resources, but also reduces the workload of the staff at the giant panda conservation base. In addition, this paper also provides us with a new idea about waste utilization.