Nanocellulose Product Design Aided by Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy

Abstract

Nanocellulose is one of the materials with applications in a wide range of technical disciplines, including electronics, oil recovery, robotics, and so on. To understand cellulose material qualities and behavior for product production, cellulose must be characterized separately or as part of a product using a range of approaches. Confocal laser scanning microscopy is one of the techniques that is currently underrepresented in the literature and is suitable to the cellulose domain. Here, we have shown how this characterization tool can uniquely and vastly aid in improving cellulose-based product design. In this brief Review, we looked at the application of confocal laser scanning microscopy in the cellulose domain, with a focus on nanocellulose due to its superior properties; confocal laser scanning microscopy can provide information on intricate structures such as thin layer-by-layer assembly, emulsion, gel stability, and collapse. Additionally, it can provide insight on the extent of enzymatic degradation of cellulose due to morphological changes; furthermore, the FRAP module was introduced briefly, with some of its fundamentals. Later, FRAP applications in primarily suspension and gels (homogeneous and heterogeneous) were introduced to provide examples of possible FRAP usage in cellulose science. In compiling this Review, we have used the most recent publications in the literature.