Preparation and characterization of regenerated cellulose films using borassus fruit fibers and an ionic liquid

•For the first time, RCF with obtained cellulose form Borassus palm fruit fiber was prepared in AmimCl.•The regenerated cellulose film possessed homogeneous structure.•An added value of an agro-waste material through its reuse was established. In this study, we successfully extracted cellulose from borassus fruit fibers by chemical process. The extracted cellulose was dissolved in an ionic liquid 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (AmimCl). Using this solution, regenerated cellulose films were prepared with water as the non solvent. The raw fruit fibers and extracted cellulose were characterized by chemical analysis. The results indicated that the content of the components other than cellulose was significantly decreased during the cellulose extraction process. Further, FTIR, 13CP-MAS NMR, wide-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to provide structural characterization of raw fibers, extracted cellulose and regenerated cellulose films. The average tensile strength, modulus and elongation at break of the regenerated cellulose films were found to be 111±19MPa, 6149±603MPa and 3.1±0.8%, respectively. The notable properties of regenerated cellulose films advocate their effectiveness for various industrial applications.