Ecological concerns over the use of fossil resources and associated environmental degradation provide increasing motivation for developing renewable resources. The use of petroleum-based polymers for short product life packaging applications contributes to solid waste streams, leads to pollution of the oceans with plastic debris, and depletes increasingly precious natural resources. Plastics based on renewable resources (bioplastics) are emerging alternatives.

For many applications, the modification of mechanical and thermo-physical properties of bioplastics is desired. Cellulosic nanowhiskers (CNW) are attractive as filler material due to their exceptional mechanical properties as well as their renewable nature. However, dispersion in hydrophobic polymer matrices is difficult because of the hydrophilic nature of cellulose. Surface modifications usually involve the use of surfactants or multiple elaborate chemical steps. In this study, we present a one-step method for the isolation of CNW and their surface modification using renewables-based acetic acid. The slow hydrolysis kinetics of the organic acid can be partially overcome by a mixed acid system comprised of acetic and hydrochloric acid. In both cases, the presence of acetate groups is verified using spectroscopic techniques, and the surface degree of substitution of hydroxyl groups estimated using dimensional information obtained by multi-angle laser-light scattering. Solvent studies verify the increase in hydrophobicity. These novel functionalized CNW are subsequently incorporated into bioplastics to form nanocomposites.