Synthesis of granular composite from chitosan enhanced with aluminum oxyhydroxide nanocrystals and studying its chemical and structural properties

Abstract

Chitosan aluminum oxyhydroxide was synthesized by a sol-gel chemical method. The composite was characterized chemically and elementally using infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) techniques, which demonstrated the bonding of chitosan fibers with aluminum oxyhydroxide crystals. The compound was also characterized morphologically and structurally using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Grain size ranged between 30 and 37nm, the XRD spectrum of the compound was exactly similar to the spectrum of the orthorhombic crystal system of natural aluminum oxyhydroxide, in addition to the characteristic peaks related to the semi-crystalline organic compound, (chitosan). The average crystal size was calculated by the Scherrer equation and it was 30nm. The stability of the compound in water was tested and it was found that the swelling index does not exceed 12%.