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- Recovery and evaluation of cellulose from agroindustrial residues of corn, grape, pomegranate, strawberry-tree fruit and favaPublication . Vallejo, Mariana; Cordeiro, Rachel; Dias, Paulo A. N.; Moura, Carla; Henriques, Maria; Seabra, Inês J.; Malça, C.; Morouço, PedroConsidering the expected increasing demand for cellulose fbers in the near future and that its major source is wood pulp, alternative sources such as vegetable wastes from agricultural activities and agro-food industries are currently being sought to prevent deforestation. In the present study, cellulose was successfully isolated from six agroindustrial residues: corncob, corn husk, grape stalk, pomegranate peel, marc of strawberry-tree fruit and fava pod. Cellulose fb ers were characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, stereomicroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Despite the evident morphological diferences among the extracted celluloses, results revealed similar compositional and thermal properties with the wood-derived commercial microcrystalline cellulose used as a control. Trace amounts of lignin or hemicellulose were detected in all cellulose samples, with the exception of corncob cellulose, that exhibited the greatest extraction yield (26%) and morphological similarities to wood-derived microcrystalline cellulose, visible through SEM. Furthermore, corncob cellulose was found to have ther mal properties (TOnset of 307.17 °C, TD of 330.31 °C, and ΔH of 306.04 kJ/kg) suitable for biomedical applications