study of the effect of murray red gum tree age on chemical components and cellulose degree of polymerization

this research was performed to study the effect of murray red gum tree age (4, 6, 8 years) on the chemical components, viscosity and the cellulose degree of polymerization. the eucalyptus trees were cut at the ages of 4, 6, and 8 from hand planted forests. the contents of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, extractives and ash for each age were then determined. the results show that with increasing age the contents of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin increased but the extractives and ash contents decreased. after measuring the viscosity of cellulose solution, the degree of polymerization(dp) was also determined by using the standard equation. the viscosity numbers for 4, 6 and 8 year old trees were 290, 503 and 566 ml/g, respectively, and the dp were 272, 568 and 652, respectively. finally after analyzing and comparing the results, the age of 8 was found to have best properties for viscose industry. but in order to reduce the forestry and production costs, 6 year old tree instead of 8 could be cut because of the close results in dp and cellulose content.