Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996

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Carbohydrate Polymers
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/carbpol

Extraction and characterisation of natural cellulose fibers from Kigelia T

africana
Manikandan Ilangovana, Vijaykumar Gunab,c, B. Prajwalb, Qiuran Jiangd,e, Narendra Reddyb,*
a
Department of Biomaterial Sciences, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan
b
Centre for Incubation, Innovation, Research and Consultancy, Jyothy Institute of Technology, Thataguni Post, Bengaluru, 560082, India
c
Visvesvaraya Technological University – Research Resource Centre, Jnana Sangama Belagavi, 590018, India
d
Key Laboratory of Textile Science &Technology, Ministry of Education, College of Textiles, Donghua University, Shanghai, China
e
Department of Technical Textiles, College of Textiles, Donghua University, Shanghai, China

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Keywords: Kigelia africana also known as sausage plant, yields highly fibrous fruit with a hard shell. Many medicinal uses
Sausage fruit are reported for the extracts from the fruits, seeds and leaves of sausage trees. In this research, natural cellulose
Anti-bacterial fibers were extracted from the fruit using NaOH and later bleached and characterized for their properties. Results
Bio-Product revealed that significant amount of hemicellulose and lignin was lost after the alkali treatment and bleaching
Cellulosic fibers
leading to a highly cellulosic fiber (up to 71 %). Morphologically, surface of the fibers varied from rough to
smooth depending on the extent of treatment. The thermal stability, crystallinity and hydrophobicity increased
after the treatment. Sausage fibers also possessed anti-microbial activity against common gram negative and
gram positive bacteria. Overall, sausage fibers have properties similar to that of cotton and better than fibers
obtained from many unconventional sources. With improved hydrophobicity and anti-bacterial properties,
sausage fibers could be potentially applied in functional polymer composites.

1. Introduction hence were suggested for medical applications (Guna, Ilangovan,

Among the different applications of agricultural residues, extraction
of natural cellulose fibers is highly preferable since fibrous applications
have a large market and offer higher value. Natural cellulose fibers
have been extracted from several unconventional sources in an attempt
to obtain fibers with unique properties (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al.,
2019, Guna, Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019; Ilangovan, Guna, Hu,
Nagananda, & Reddy, 2018; Jebadurai, Raj, Sreenivasan, & Binoj, 2019;
Kathirselvam, Kumaravel, Arthanarieswaran, & Saravanakumar, 2019;
Liu et al., 2019). Fibers obtained from cotton stalks, rice and wheat
straw, cornstalks and husks had properties similar to that of cotton, jute
and linen and were found to be useful for textile, composites and other
applications (Reddy & Yang, 2009a, 2009b, 2009c). Recent studies have
also shown the possibility of extracting and the unique features of
natural cellulose fibers from aerial roots of banyan trees and wild plants
such as Tridax procumbens and Catharanthus roseus (Ganapathy,
Sathiskumar, Senthamaraikannan, Saravanakumar, & Khan, 2019;
Vijay et al., 2019; Vinod et al., 2019). Similarly, fibers obtained from
tulsi stems or sabaigrass, which are considered as weeds, not only had
good mechanical properties but also showed antimicrobial activity and
Adithya et al., 2019; Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019). In addition,
sabai fibers also possessed high thermal and noise insulation compar-
able to industrial standards when used as reinforcement for composites,
extending its applications beyond automotive to green building and
interior applications (Guna, Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019).
Kigelia Africana also known as sausage tree is an evergreen plant
that can reach up to 20 m in height. Fruits of Kigelia Africana (sausage
fruit) can grow up to 1 m x18 cm, 30−100 cm long and can weigh up to
12 kg. Sausage fruits consist of a hard protective and inedible shell, that
forms more than 80 % of the weight of the fruit (Bello, Shehu, Musa,
Zaini Asmawi, & Mahmud, 2016). In addition to use as food, the pulp,
seeds and other components of the sausage fruit have been proven to
have medicinal properties. Extracts obtained from the sausage fruit and
tree have shown antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, anti-in-
flammatory and central nervous system (CNS) stimulant activities
(Akah, 1996; Bello et al., 2016). Ethanol and n-hexane extracts from the
leaves and barks of Kigelia africana tree had good antibacterial activity
against six common micro-organisms with inhibition level as high as 67
% (Hussain et al., 2016). Extracts from the bark of the plant showed
higher activity compared to the leaves or fruit extracts. Methanol

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: narendra.r@ciirc.jyothyit.ac.in (N. Reddy).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2020.115996
Received 11 November 2019; Received in revised form 11 February 2020; Accepted 11 February 2020
Available online 13 February 2020
0144-8617/ © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
M. Ilangovan, et al.
extracts from the leaves are reported to contain flavonoid rich fractions
that will aid in therapeutic treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (Falode,
Akinmoladun, Olaleye, & Akindahunsi, 2017). Other studies have
shown that the sausage plant extracts can increase body growth and
organ development (Micheli, Sanogo, Mobilia, & Occhiuto, 2019).
Apart from phenolic components (saponin, tannin, terpenoid), sausage
fruits were reported to contain minerals such as potassium and calcium,
proteins and fat which are suitable for several food and non-food ap-
plications (Abass, Oseni, 2018). Although the extracts of the fruits and
other parts of the sausage tree are studied for their medicinal proper-
ties, to the best of our knowledge, there are no studies conducted on the
non-food applications of the fibers in the fruit. In this research, we have
studied the structure and properties of the fibers in the sausage fruit
before and after chemical treatments. Properties of the fibers have been
compared to common natural cellulose fibers and also to those obtained
from agricultural residues and biomass.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Materials
Sausage fruits each weighing about 5 kg were collected from local
farms near our campus in Bengaluru, Karnataka. Analytical grade so-
dium hydroxide, acetic acid, acetone and other chemicals required for
the experiment were purchased from Hybrid Fine Chemicals,
Bangalore, Karnataka.
2.2. Fiber extraction
Untreated Sausage fruit fibers (SFF) were separated from the fruits
manually. Initially the raw fruit were cut into sections, oven dried for
24 h and then fed through a two roller mechanical crusher. Partially
crushed fruits were collected and soaked in boiling water prior to the
separation of fibrous part.
SFF was then treated with 0.2 N NaOH solution for 90 min at 100 °C.
The untreated fiber to alkali ratio was maintained at 1:10. After treat-
ment, the liquid containing dissolved hemicelluloses, lignin and other
extractives was decanted and disposed. The fibers extracted through
alkali treatment (ATF) were thoroughly washed until the pH of the fi-
bers was neutral. The neutral pH fibers were later immersed in 10 %
acetic acid solution for 10 min and rinsed. Later, the fibers were dried in
a hot air oven at 110 °C for 3 h and stored for further characterization.
2.3. Bleaching
The alkali treated fibers (ATF) were further bleached using 7% so-
dium chlorite at 80 °C for 1 h. The fiber: sodium chlorite ratio was
maintained at 1:5. After bleaching, the fibers were washed multiple
times using de-ionized water. The fibers were then immersed in 5%
acetic acid to neutralize the alkali. The bleached fibers (BF) were then
dried at 110 °C for 3 h and used for further analysis.
2.4. Fiber characterization
The percentage cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and ash content of
SFF, ATF and BF were determined according to the standard test
methods as described in (Guna, Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019). Each
component was analyzed in triplicates and the average value was re-
ported.
The fibers were tested for their tensile strength on a Universal
Tensile Tester (MTS Mechatronics, Ichalkaranji, India) according to the
ASTM D 3822-14 standard. The cross-head speed and the gauge length
was set at 10 mm/min and 25.4 mm, respectively. Samples from three
different sets of extraction were used for the characterization. Twenty
samples from each set, i.e., a total of 60 samples were tested. The mean
and standard deviation was reported.
2
Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996
The morphology of the fibers was observed in a Scanning Electron
Microscope (Hitachi -Model SU 3500). Before observation, the fibers
were sputter coated with gold-palladium in an Ion Beam coater for 60 s.
The coated samples were then analyzed at an operational voltage of 15
kV.
X-ray diffraction study was conducted on the powdered fiber sam-
ples (particle size: 200 μm) in a Bruker D8 Advanced Eco X-ray dif-
fractometer equipped with Bragg-Brentano Focusing geometry. The
analysis was done using a Cu-Kα radiation at a wavelength (λ =1.54 Å)
and the diffraction patterns were recorded at 2θ angles varying from 5°
to 50°. The readings were analyzed in Origin Pro software and the peak
intensities were identified. The Segal equation (Segal, Creely, Martin, &
Conrad, 1959) was used to calculate the crystallinity index (Xc) as
shown below:
I002 Iam
Xc = × 100%
I002
Where, I002 and Iam are the peak intensities at the crystalline and
amorphous region respectively. Size of cellulose crystallites in the fibers
were calculated using the Scherrer equation and the data has been in-
cluded in the supplementary file (Table S1).
FTIR was carried out to identify the type of bonding and compo-
nents present in the fibers. The spectrum was recorded using Perkin
Elmer/Spectrum 2 (Diamond UTAR) in 4000 to 400 cm−1range at a
resolution of 2 cm−1.
Wettability of liquids over the fiber surface was carried out using a
contact angle apparatus (OCA 15EC, Data Physics Instruments,
Germany). To measure the water contact angle (WCA), 2 μL of water
was dispensed using a micropipette over the fibers along the long-
itudinal axis. Images were then captured using a camera connected with
a computer interface. Contact angle measurements were done on the
liquid spread over the fiber surface.
Ability of the extracted fibers to resist common bacteria was also
studied using two gram positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus)
and two gram negative (Escherichia coli, Serratia marcescens) bacterial
strains. The analysis was conducted according to the method described
in (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019).
Extracted fibers were used as reinforcements in gluten matrix to
develop potential bio-products. Products in the shape of packaging
boxes were fabricated at 160 °C and 600 MPa pressure in a custom
made hot press with box shape mold. The fibers: gluten ratio was kept
at (90:10 % w/w) for the process. Digital images of the boxes developed
are included in the article.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Composition of the fibers
SFF is lignocellulosic with high percentage of lignin and lower
concentration of hemicellulose. Untreated SFF have similar cellulose
content as that of alkali extracted fibers from tulsi and turmeric stalks
(Table 1). Cellulose content of the fibers increases after treating with
alkali and further increases to about 72 % after bleaching. Corre-
spondingly, the hemicellulose and lignin contents are also altered
(Table 1). As the cellulose content increases, the fibers also change
color becoming brownish due to the alkali treatment but later turn
white after bleaching (Fig. 1). Higher cellulose content not only in-
creases whiteness but should also provide the fibers with better tensile
properties unless the cellulose in the fibers get damaged.
Hemicellulose content of all the fibers is lower than the lignin
content as is typically observed in non-traditional fibers (Guna,
Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019; Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019).
Lignin content is higher than cotton but lower than that found in flax,
jute, coir and other common natural cellulose fibers (Reddy & Yang,
2009c; Vijay et al., 2019). Typically, the lignin content should decrease
M. Ilangovan, et al. Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996

Table 1
Compositional data of fibers obtained from sausage plant compared to that of other non-traditional cellulosic fibers (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019; Ilangovan
et al., 2018).
Sample
Composition SFF ATF BF Turmeric Fibers Tulsi Fibers

Cellulose (%) 55.1 ± 0.2 69.9 ± 0.1 71.6 ± 1.2 56.5 ± 0.6 52.5 ± 0.2
Hemicellulose (%) 9.34 ± 0.08 9.01 ± 0.5 9.81 ± 0.4 12.4 ± 0.2 18.5 ± 1.3
Lignin (%) 11.7 ± 0.2 10.00 ± 0.4 13.5 ± 1.1 14.8 ± 1.3 14.3 ± 0.19
Ash(wt.%) 1.85 ± 0.1 1.3 ± 0.1 0.64 ± 0.03 10.2 ± 1.2 9.61 ± 0.19
Flavonoids μg/ml 160 ± 0.1 145 ± 0.2 ND 196 ± 0.1 180 ± 0.1
Phenol μg/ml 240 ± 0.2 180 ± 0.1 92 ± 0.2 180 ± 0.1 89 ± 0.2

ND – Not Detected.

after bleaching but we observe a contrary effect in this study. Increase
in the lignin content may be because of its recalcitrant form or higher
concentration of lignin in the treated fibers compared to those removed
during chemical treatment and washing. Ash content in the fibers de-
creased by about 65 % from SFF to BF and were found to be up to 93 %
lower than that in turmeric and tulsi fibers, but comparable to cotton
and cotton stalk fibers (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019; Ilangovan
et al., 2018; Reddy & Yang, 2009c). Treating at stronger conditions may
further increase the cellulose and reduce lignin and hemicellulose
content. However, the fibers may become smaller and unusable for high
value applications. Nevertheless, the fiber properties are equally in-
fluenced by the morphology of the individual fibers, crystallinity and
orientation.
3.2. Morphology
Surface of untreated fibers is rough due to the presence of impurities
(Fig. 2a–c). Bundles of individual fibers of width ranging from 40 to 80
μm are observable (Fig. 2a). On further magnifying, a thick coating of
substances most likely hemicellulose, ash and other impurities can be
seen (Fig. 2b, c). Alkali treatment removes most of the surface sub-
stances resulting in fibers with smooth texture (Fig. 2d, e). Some of the
individual fibers get separated from the bundles which could disin-
tegrate into fibrils if treatment conditions are too aggressive or not
controlled. Individual fibers had widths of 50 μm and length more than
45−50 mm.Microfibrils arranged at an angle to the fiber-axis (micro
fibrillar angle or MFA) are seen in ATF (Fig. 2f). The MFA of ATF and BF
were measured using ImageJ software and are reported in Table 2.
Bleaching removes almost all of the impurities leading to a cleaner
surface in BF (Fig. 2g, h). Not only fibers but individual fibrils can be
observed on the surface of the BF. Further, the convolutions and distinct
fiber taper typical to cellulosic fibers are also apparent in the ATF and
BF (Fig. 2f, g, i). Morphological analysis indicates that BF have char-
acteristics very similar to that of cotton.
3.3. Tensile properties
Images of the tensile experiment can be found in the supplementary
file (Fig. S2). The tensile properties increase successively after alkali
treatment and further after bleaching (Table 2). An 8% increase in the
strength of ATF and 28 % increase in BF was observed compared to SFF.
Similarly, the elongation and modulus in BF increased by about 44 %
and 24 % respectively compared to SFF. Increase in the tensile prop-
erties can be directly related to the chemical treatment and specifically
attributed to the following two reasons: the increase in cellulose con-
tent and reorganization of the cellulose fibers and crystals during the
treatment. As a result of reorganization, the MFA increased from 13.5°
in ATF to 16.4° in the BF. Typically, higher MFA leads to higher flex-
ibility and hence higher elongation (Reddy & Yang, 2005) which was
also observed in the case of sausage fibers. Tensile strength of sausage
fruit fibers was comparable to that of cotton and jute. The elongation
was however, higher than jute and lower than cotton (Ilangovan et al.,
2018; Reddy & Yang, 2009c).
3.4. X- ray diffraction analysis (XRD)
A gradual but distinct change in the crystal structure of the fiber
occurs after alkali treatment and bleaching. Intensity of the main 002
cellulose I crystal peak at 22° increases sharply and becomes narrower
after alkali treatment and even further after bleaching (Fig. 3). In the
raw and alkali treated fibers, the 101 and 110 peaks are merged due to
the presence of hemicellulose and impurities. The two peaks are distinct

Fig. 1. Schematic representation of the process used for fiber extraction from sausage fruit.

3
M. Ilangovan, et al. Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996

Fig. 2. SEM images of: (a-c) SFF, (d-f) ATF, (g-i) BF.

in the bleached fibers since they have high cellulose content. However,
there is no change in the cellulose allomorph from I to II as observed
after strong alkaline treatments (Song, Zhang, Zhang, & Tan, 2015).
Corresponding to the variations in peak intensities and positions, the %
crystallinity of raw, alkali treated, and bleached fibers was 59, 60 and
70 %, respectively. Bleached sausage fibers have crystallinity similar to
cotton and linen (65–70%) and higher than fibers obtained from lig-
nocellulosic crop residues (50–60%) (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019;
Ilangovan et al., 2018; Reddy & Yang, 2009c). Higher crystallinity
would reduce the accessibility of the cellulose to chemicals and en-
zymes and hence chemical modifications and dyeing would be difficult.
Therefore, the extent of treatment must be controlled depending up on
the intended applications.

3.5. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy

The FTIR spectrum of SFF, ATF, BF is given in Fig. 4. A typical Fig. 3. Normalized XRD spectrum of untreated, alkali treated, and bleached
vibration at the 1048 cm−1 region (COe group related to cellulose sausage fibers.
content) is prominent in BF compared to SFF and ATF. Similar behavior
was observed in the OH stretch at 3424 cm−1 indicating higher cellu-
3.6. Changes in surface wettability
lose content in the BF (Yang, Yan, Chen, Lee, & Zheng, 2007). The
hemicellulose and pectin fingerprint region at the 1734 cm−1 (CO]
Treating the fibers with alkali and later bleaching, lead to a decrease
stretch) is visible only in the SFF which suggests successful removal
in the contact angle (Fig. 5). SFF contains non-polar, hydrophobic
after treatment with alkali and bleaching. A small peak at 1513 cm−1
surface impurties such as wax and pectin. Also, the heterogenous sur-
(CC] group) relating to the lignin aromatic network is evident in the
face of the SFF results in air pockets trapped between the droplet and
BF. Stronger peak at the C–H region (2922 cm−1) typical to aromatic
surface, there by increasing the contact angle (Le Phuong, Izzati Ayob,
compounds is also observed in the BF, suggesting higher lignin content
Blanford, Mohammad Rawi, & Szekely, 2019). After alkali treatment or
than SFF and ATF. The FTIR spectra are in good accordance with the
bleaching, the non-polar impurities are gradually removed (as observed
compositional data (Table 1).

Table 2
Tensile properties of untreated, alkali treated, and bleached sausage fruit fibers.
Sample Tensile Strength (MPa) Elongation At break (%) Young’s modulus (GPa) Microfibril angle (°)

Untreated Fiber 379.28 ± 19.53 2.61 ± 0.74 15.68 ± 2.92 –

Alkali treated Fiber 411.08 ± 14.56 3.68 ± 0.46 17.52 ± 1.72 13.54 ± 1.04
Bleached Fiber 484.01 ± 16.84 3.75 ± 0.564 19.47 ± 1.47 16.41 ± 1.48

4
M. Ilangovan, et al. Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996

Fig. 4. FT-IR spectrum of untreated, alkali treated, and bleached sausage fibers.

in Fig. 2). This removal leads to an increase in the polarity and surface
energy of the fibers thereby turning them hydrophilic (Raharjo,
Soenoko, Irawan, & Suprapto, 2018; Vijay et al., 2019). The smoother
BF in comparison to SFF and ATF had over 20° and 15° lower WCA
respectively, attributed to the higher cellulose (hydrophilic) content.
However, all three fiber surfaces have contact angle less than 90 °C
which is typically considered as hydrophilic. Similar behavior was re-
ported in the studies of Tridax procumbens, Cantala and hemp fibers
(Raharjo et al., 2018; Vijay et al., 2019).

3.7. Thermal degradation

Thermal analysis shows that the degradation of the fibers follows a

three step process (Fig. 6). The initial stage occurring between 80–90 °C
leads to about 5% weight loss due to the removal of surface moisture. Fig. 6. TGA/DTG profile of untreated, alkali treated, and bleached sausage fi-
Degradation behavior of the fibers can then be divided into two regions bers.
(191−300 °C) and (300–406 °C). Weight loss at the earlier stage is
possibly due to the degradation of mostly hemicellulose and partially
Hu et al., 2019; Guna, Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019; Ilangovan et al.,
lignin and at the latter stage due to the decomposition of cellulose
2018). We hypothesized that fibers from sausage fruit will also poten-
(Kathirselvam et al., 2019). All three fibers are quite stable after the
tially exhibit anti-microbial properties given its other proven medicinal
initial step, with 25 % weight loss occurring only between 302–332 °C
applications. Having resistance to micro-organisms will be useful in
(Fig. 6). Interestingly, SFF show higher thermal stability than the alkali
food packaging, medical and other fibrous applications. As hypothe-
treated or bleached fibers in this region probably due to the presence of
sized, sausage fruit fibers showed appreciable antimicrobial activity to
impurities with higher stability on the surface of the fibers. Bleached
common microorganisms. Generally speaking, with increased dosage,
fibers show marginally slower rate of degradation compared to un-
the inhibition activity increased due to the higher quantities of phyto-
treated and alkali treated fibers (Fig. 6). Since all three fibers are stable
chemicals present. Phytochemicals play a significant role in the anti-
below 300 °C, they are suitable for processing for composites and tex-
bacterial activity of any material (Bandeira et al., 2018; Oikeh,
tiles without being damaged.
Omoregie, Oviasogie, & Oriakhi, 2016). As seen in Table 1, phenols and
flavonoids are higher in SFF compared to ATF and BF. Consequently,
3.8. Antibacterial activity the percentage inhibition of SFF (54–97 %) was higher at all dosages
against all the four organisms compared to ATF and BF. As the con-
Natural cellulose fibers obtained from several non-conventional centration of phytochemicals decreased, the activity in ATF and BF
sources have shown inherent antibacterial activity (Guna, Ilangovan,

Fig. 5. Digital image depicting the wettability of (a) SFF (b) ATF (c) BF.

5
M. Ilangovan, et al.
Table 3
Extent of inhibition (%) of four common bacteria by untreated, alkali-treated and bleached fiber extracted from the sausage tree fruit fibers at different dosages.
Organism Inhibition at 50 mg/ml dosage (%)
SFF ATF
Gram Positive S aureus 91.5 ± 0.1 70.8 ± 0.2
B cereus 72.4 ± 0.2 69.6 ± 0.3
Gram Negative E coli 82.4 ± 0.4 61.9 ± 0.2
S marcescens 54.5 ± 0.3 39.4 ± 0.4
Fig. 7. Boxes suitable for food and non-food applications molded from: Top and
Bottom Row Left: SFF, Top and Bottom Row Middle: ATF, Top and Bottom Row
Right: BF.
reduced by up to 63 % (Table 3). This phenomenon was observed in
other natural fibers from non-traditional sources such as tulsi, turmeric
stalks and sabai grass as well (Guna, Ilangovan, Hu et al., 2019; Guna,
Ilangovan, Adithya et al., 2019; Ilangovan et al., 2018). The degree of
inhibition was high against gram-positive bacteria than the gram-ne-
gative bacteria in all the fibers. This could be attributed to the outer
membrane in the gram negative bacteria that acts as a barrier to foreign
substances (Oikeh et al., 2016). Gram negative bacteria contains a ty-
pical preventive area known as the periplasmic space where enzymes
break down foreign particles (even the anti-microbial agents) trying to
access the organism (Holetz et al., 2002; Cheruiyot, Olila, & Kateregga,
2009; Oikeh et al., 2016). Although, the presence of phenols and fla-
vonoids improves the anti-bacterial activity, the exact mechanism of
inhibition is different for different compounds (Abdulkhani,
Hosseinzadeh, Ashori, & Esmaeeli, 2017). Thorough micro-biological
studies are required to predict the inhibition mechanism of sausage fruit
fibers. However, the fiber extraction conditions could be further ad-
justed for the optimum concentration of phytochemicals for specific
applications.
3.9. Potential to develop bio-products
Sausage fruit fibers obtained had good mechanical properties which
enables us to use them in developing various bio-products. As seen from
Fig. 7, both untreated and bleached fibers were compression molded
into boxes. Since sausage fruit fibers demonstrated antimicrobial
properties, the products developed could be used in food applications
such as packaging of dry fruit, ready-to-eat foods and sweets, replacing
currently used synthetic containers. Further, they are can be used in
developing bio composites with promising mechanical strength.
4. Conclusions
Sausage fruit is composed of lignocellulosic fibers with cellulose and
lignin content of about 55 and 12 %, respectively but generally con-
sidered non-edible for humans. However, the raw fibers and those after
treating with alkali and subject to bleaching all have good mechanical
properties, crystallinity and morphology. After bleaching, cellulose
content in the fibers increased to 71 % and the tensile strength was 484
MPa, similar to that of cotton. Further, sausage tree fibers have
6
Carbohydrate Polymers 236 (2020) 115996
Inhibition at 100 mg/ml dosage (%)
BF SFF ATF BF
57.6 ± 0.2 97.5 ± 0.4 86.4 ± 0.3 62.2 ± 0.4
54.2 ± 0.4 92.2 ± 0.1 82.6 ± 0.2 68.4 ± 0.4
42.6 ± 0.4 88.4 ± 0.6 65.2 ± 0.4 48.4 ± 0.2
19.8 ± 0.6 64.9 ± 0.3 42.7 ± 0.1 26.3 ± 0.2
convolutions and tapered edges as seen in cotton. With thermal stability
(up to 300 °C), high crystallinity (70 %) and good elongation (3.75 %),
the fibers can be used for composites and non-woven applications.
However, the fibers are coarser and also are shorter in length and hence
unsuitable for typical textile applications. The new approach to develop
sustainable bio-products using sausage fruit fibers shows promise to
replace some of the non-biodegradable, synthetic polymer based pro-
ducts in the market.
Author credit statement
Narendra Reddy and Vijaykumar Guna conceptualized and designed
the research. MI, QJ and PS conducted and analyzed the data. MI, NR
wrote the manuscript with help from VG.
Acknowledgements
The authors thank Azyme Biosciences Private Limited for their help
in characterizing the anti-bacterial properties. The authors also ac-
knowledge the financial support from the Department of Biotechnology,
Government of India (for NR) and the Ministry of Education, Culture,
Sports, Science and Technology - Japan (for MI).
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary material related to this article can be found, in the
online version, at doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2020.115996.
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