Process for producing and using fibrillated biodegradable microfibers

A process for producing fibrillated biodegradable microfibers from organic plant materials, consisting essentially of in order of the following steps:

• sourcing only plant materials;
• b) performing conditioning, sorting, with enzymatic or chemical agents to eliminate impurities, non-cellulosic compounds, and waxy substances from the selected plant materials,
• c) utilizing compression method to expel surplus moisture from said selected plant materials to obtain compressed plant materials;
• d) employing aqueous immersion techniques to subject said compressed plant materials to thermal processing for a pre-determined time and increased temperature to obtain thermal processed plant materials into a solvent;
• e) subjecting said thermal processed plant materials to a aqueous rinsing step, designed to effectively extricate and disengage any vestiges of said solvent;
• f) employing mechanical disintegration means, comprising high-intensity ultrasonication, mechanical shear, or microfluidization, in conjunction with pressure modulation, to reduce the thermal processed plant materials into micro-sized entities while maintaining the integrity of the fibers;
• g) adding at least one of matrix forming substance, stabilizer, sealant and preservative to said micro-sized entities subsequently undergoing a blending process to obtain a first mixture;
• h) exposing said first mixture to a controlled desiccation regimen employing a precision hot air convection apparatus, regulating temperature and airflow parameters, until the attainment of a targeted moisture of 15% thereby obtaining dried first mixture;
• i) implementing a mechanical reduction process, involving said dried first mixture, resulting in the attainment of a fibrillated biodegradable microfibers with a diameter measurement below a threshold of 10 μm
• j) isolating and recovering said fibrillated biodegradable microfibers;
• and
• k) optionally, employing post-processing strategies.