Rheological Properties of Palm-Based Carboxymethyl Cellulose Solutions

Palm empty fruit bunches have been value added into carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC). However, its potential as rheological modifiers in cosmetic and personal care has yet to be explored. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the rheological performance of the CMC solutions (1%, 2%, 3% and 4%) against two commercially available CMC (cotton-based and wood-based CMC). Our study revealed that all the CMC solutions studied gave flow behaviour index of less than 1, which indicated the pseudoplastic or shear- thinning properties. Among the three CMC studied, 2% and 3% CMC from palm empty fruit bunches (PEFB-CMC) and cotton-based CMC exhibited viscoelastic solid properties where the storage modulus (G') was larger than loss modulus (G'') on amplitude sweep test. On the other hand, all the wood-based CMC did not exhibit any viscoelastic solid properties. In addition, the 2% palm-based CMC exhibited higher gel strength as compared to 2% cotton-based CMC solution, while the wood-based CMC exhibited fluid- structure through frequency sweep test. The palm-based CMC exhibited potential application as rheological modifier in consumer products particularly for the development of cosmetic and personal care products. (author)