SYNTHESIS AND APPLICATION OF TWO NEW IONIC LIQUIDS IN THE EXTRACTION OF CELLULOSE FROM BOUGAINVILLEA SPECTABILIS

Cellulose is a natural polymer formed by chains of polysaccharide carbohydrates. Traditional processes for extraction of cellulose are expensive and require solvents with high ionic strength and stringent conditions. In this paper, we propose the extraction of cellulose from Bougainvillea spectabilis by using a traditional procedure, such as alkaline and acidic hydrolysis extraction, as well as the Vieira extraction method with the aid of two ionic liquids (ILs), with the purpose of using a solvent that allows reducing the harmful impact on the environment and human health. The obtained fibrous materials were analyzed by FTIR spectroscopy and the gravimetric method. According to gravimetric measurements, the results show an efficiency of 99.3% for the proposed extraction method and of 42.97% for acid hydrolysis. These results show that the proposed method allows adequate extraction using ionic solvents.