Green Extraction of Cellulose from Waste Olive Wood Using Microwave Assisted Alkali Treatment

There has been a growing emphasis placed on the development
of environmentally friendly methods for extracting cellulose from
natural sources over the course of the past several years. Waste
olive wood is a resource that is both abundant and sustainable, and
it has the potential to be utilized for the extraction of cellulose through
the utilization of a microwave assisted extraction (MAE) technique
that is also environmentally friendly. Obtaining cellulose from waste
olive wood in a manner that is both environmentally acceptable and
effective through the utilization of alkali as a primary component is
the purpose of this effort, which aims to develop an MAE process.
The extraction process was carried out at 90°C and 100°C for 20
minutes. Where the maximum amount of cellulose obtained yield
of 48.64% at 100°C, and the crystallinity index was found to be
62.58%. The microwave with alkali was able to successfully remove
the cellulose from waste olive wood, as demonstrated by the
scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image, the Fourier transform
infrared (FT-IR) analysis, and the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).
In compared to more traditional extraction methods, microwave
technology has significantly reduced the amount of time required
for extraction as well as the amount of energy that is consumed. As
a result, the process has become more environmentally friendly and
efficient. The cellulose that has been extracted has the potential to
be utilized in a variety of industries, such as the textile industry, the
packaging industry, and the biomedical industry. The findings of this
study indicate that it is feasible to obtain cellulose of superior quality
from olive wood that has been discarded.