Water vapor sorption properties of TEMPO oxidized and sulfuric acid treated cellulose nanocrystal films

•An investigation on water vapor sorption behavior of two nanocellulose films was achieved.•Significant differences in sorption hysteresis and kinetics were confirmed.•The modulus of nanocellulose film was calculated using Kelvin-Vogit model. For cellulose nanocrystal film, water adsorption is extremely important for its product performance. For gaining a deeper understanding of hygroscopic behavior, two cellulose nanocrystal films, such as TEMPO oxidized cellulose nanocrystal film (TOCNF) and sulfuric acid treated cellulose nanocrystal film (SACNF) were investigated using dynamic water vapor sorption apparatus. During the water vapor sorption process, the running time, real-time sample mass, target relative humidity (RH), actual RH and real-time temperature were all collected. Through the comparison of these collected data, significant differences in the equilibrium moisture content, sorption hysteresis and sorption kinetics were confirmed. It was important to note that TOCNF and SACNF had equilibrium moisture contents of 28.2% and 22.8, respectively, at a RH of 95%. Then, using parallel exponential kinetics (PEK) model, sorption kinetics data were accurately fitted. Furthermore, two Kelvin-Voigt elements were introduced to interpret the fitting results and calculate the modulus of TOCNF and SACNF.