NANOFIBRILLATED CELLULOSE AEROGEL FROM KHAT (CATHA EDULIS) WASTE: FABRICATION AND CHARACTERIZATIONS

Cellulose fiber was extracted from khat waste (KW) using the chlorine free method and an aerogel was prepared by freeze drying of nanofibrillated cellulose of KW. The aerogel was loaded with a model drug, diclofenac sodium. The drug loaded aerogel (LA), drug unloaded aerogel (ULA), as-extracted cellulose (Cel) and KW were characterized using different instrumental techniques. Nanofibrillation of the cellulose fiber for 4 h gave 83.06% nanofiber. ULA had lower crystallinity index, as compared to Cel (53.89% vs 65.22%), but had higher thermal stability than LA and Cel. The drug loading capacity of the aerogel was 11.7 mg of pure drug per 100 mg of the nanofiber. The in vitro drug release from LA was less than one-third of the loaded drug (i.e., 31.4%) within 6 h. The findings highlight that nanofibrillated cellulose aerogel can be prepared from KW and may have potential applications in areas such as drug delivery.