Hydrothermal fabrication, characterization, and biological activity of cellulose/CaCO3 bionanocomposites

Bionanocomposites with the combination of natural polymers and inorganic nanoparticles may induce unique properties and exhibit promising functions for different applications. Herein, we report a hydrothermal route to the preparation of cellulose/CaCO3 bionanocomposites using the cellulose solution, Ca(NO3)2·4H2O and Na2SiO3·9H2O. The cellulose solution was previously prepared by the dissolution of microcrystalline cellulose in NaOH–urea aqueous solution. The urea also acts as the CO32− source for the synthesis of CaCO3. The influences of several reaction parameters, such as the heating time, the heating temperature, and the types of additives on the products were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential thermal analysis. The experimental results demonstrated that the hydrothermal conditions had an effect on the morphology of the bionanocomposites. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the cellulose/CaCO3 bionanocomposites had good biocompatibility, so that the bionanocomposites could be ideal candidate for practical biomedical applications.