AbstractNeutron diffraction profiles for cellulose from different sources were compared before and after alkaline hydrogen peroxide (AHP) treatment. It was found that AHP treatment did not cause detectable changes in the structure of highly polymerized cellulose. In measurements on wheat straw, peaks were observed at the angles characteristic of pure cellulose. Changes, with AHP treatment, of the intensities, positions, and widths of these peaks were consistent with effects due to delignification, which frees the cellulose lattice from strains caused by the binding of lignin.
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