Waste açaí (Euterpe precatoria Mart.) seeds as a new alternative source of cellulose: Extraction and characterization

• Autor(a) principal: Barros, Silma de Sá
• Data de Publicação: 2021
• Outros Autores: Oliveira, Erick da Silva, Pessoa Jr, Wanison André Gil, Rosas, Alexandra Lizandra Gomes, Freitas, Ana Emília Margarido de, Lira, Márcia Santos de F., Calderaro, Fábio Leandro, Saron, Clodoaldo, Freitas, Flávio Augusto de
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Research, Society and Development
• Texto Completo: https://rsdjournal.org/index.php/rsd/article/view/16661
• topic: Agro-industrial waste; Açaí seed; Cellulose.; Residuos agroindustriales; Semilla de açaí; Celulosa.; Resíduo agroindustrial; Semente de açaí; Celulose.

Açaí (Euterpe precatoria Mart.) is a plant widely cultivated in the northern region of Brazil. Its fruits have been gaining worldwide prominence due to their countless benefits for human health. Consequently, pulp production has increased considerably in recent years, generating significant amounts of waste (mainly seeds). As these residues do not have proper disposal, they are either discarded in the environment or incinerated, causing numerous environmental impacts. To present alternative applications of these residues, this study aimed to evaluate the lignocellulosic contents of açaí seeds – extracts, ash, lignin, cellulose (α-cellulose and hemicellulose) – in addition to extracting and characterizing the cellulose obtained from this abundant residue. The seeds and the extracted cellulose were characterized by several techniques: X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Attenuated total reflectance with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR/FTIR), and thermogravimetry (TGA). In this study, the high potential of using açaí seeds as an alternative source of cellulose was confirmed, since presents 45.5% of this polymer and all the characterization techniques show the purity of the extracted cellulose (type I).