In-situ Production and Collection of Bacterial Cellulose on Jute and Flax Mats by Static Cultivation

In this study, jute and flax mats were used as a support material to deposit bacterial cellulose (BC) on its surface produced by Gluconacetobacter liquefaciens (MTCC 3135) through fermentation process under static condition. Amount of BC produced during the study indicates that type of mats as support material affects the production of BC at the air-liquid interface. About 2.45 g/l and 1.85 g/l of BC was produced in presence of jute and flax mats as support, respectively. Neat BC obtained under static cultivation was found to be brittle in nature. In order to prevent brittleness in BC, mat hanging method has been proposed to deposit BC directly on the surface of the mat. FTIR peaks obtained at 3337 and 3350 cm(-1) as well as at 1647 and 1654 cm(-1) indicated the presence of cellulose in form of BC on both the mats. Microscopic observation, water uptake behavior and antibacterial studies of neat mats, unadhered BC and BC deposited on mats were also carried out and the results were compared. The proposed in-situ method of collecting BC on the cellulosic mats will help in fabrication of biocomposite sheets that can be further explored in packaging, medical and biomedical applications.