Impact of Biofield Treatment on Chemical and Thermal Properties of Cellulose and Cellulose Acetate

Cellulose being an excellent biopolymer has cemented its place firmly in many industries as a coating material, textile, composites, and biomaterial applications. In the present study, we have investigated the effect of biofield treatment on physicochemical properties of cellulose and cellulose acetate. The cellulose and cellulose acetate were exposed to biofield and further the chemical and thermal properties were investigated. X-ray diffraction study asserted that the biofield treatment did affect the crystalline nature of cellulose. The percentage of crystallite size was found increased significantly in treated cellulose by 159.83%, as compared to control sample. This showed that biofield treatment was changing the crystalline nature of treated cellulose. However treated cellulose acetate showed a reduction in crystallite size (-17.38%) as compared to control sample. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) of treated cellulose showed no improvement in melting temperature as compared to control sample. Contrarily cellulose acetate showed significant improvement in melting temperature peak at 351.91ºC as compared to control (344ºC) polymer. Moreover percentage change in latent heat of fusion (?H) was calculated from the DSC thermogram of both treated and control polymers. A significant increase in percentage ?H of both treated cellulose (59.09%) and cellulose acetate (105.79%) polymers indicated that biofield treatment enhanced the thermal stability of the treated polymers. CHNSO analysis revealed a significant change in percentage hydrogen and oxygen of treated cellulose (%H-17.77, %O-16.89) and cellulose acetate (%H-5.67, %O-13.41). Though minimal change was observed in carbon percentage of both treated cellulose (0.29%) and cellulose acetate (0.39%) polymers as compared to their respective control samples. Thermo gravimetric analysis and Differential thermo gravimetric (TGA-DTG) analysis of treated cellulose acetate (353ºC) showed increased maximum thermal decomposition temperature as compared to control polymer (351ºC). This showed the higher thermal stability of the treated cellulose acetate polymer; although the maximum thermal decomposition temperature of treated cellulose (248ºC) was decreased as compared to control cellulose (321ºC). These outcomes confirmed that biofield treatment has changed the physicochemical properties of the cellulose polymers.

The present work reports the effect of Mr. Trivedi’s biofield on chemical and thermal properties of cellulose based polymers (cellulose and cellulose acetate). The XRD studies revealed well-defined crystalline behavior for both control cellulose and biofield treated sample. Biofield treated sample showed greater crystallite size as compared to control cellulose, which was quite unexpected, and we hypothesize that biofield was inducing more long range order between the atoms alleviating its crystalline nature. Though a decrease in crystallite size was observed in treated cellulose acetate as compared to control sample.

The DSC thermogram of control cellulose showed no change in melting behavior, on the other hand, treated cellulose acetate showed enhanced melting temperature peak, which revealed the high thermal stability of the respective polymer. CHNSO results corroborated substantial increase in percentage hydrogen and oxygen of treated polymers (cellulose and cellulose acetate) as compared to control sample. TGA analysis confirmed the higher thermal stability of treated cellulose acetate as compared to control; however thermal stability was decreased in treated cellulose as compared to control. Energy from the Biofield treatment that was absorbed by the treated samples might have played an important role that caused a substantial increase in the latent heat of fusion of both the treated samples. Based on the results achieved, we conclude that the biofield treated polymers could play an important role in the applications of wound dressing materials.