DOI: 10.22146/ajche.51313 AJChE 2020, Vol. 20, No. 1, 01 – 10 Fabrication of Cellulose Sponge: Effects of Drying Process and Cellulose Nanofiber Deposition on the Physical Strength Abdul Halim* 1,4 Yinchao Xu 2 Toshiharu Enomae 3 1 Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan 2 Department of Light Chemistry Industry, School of Environmental and Natural Resources, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, 310023, P.R. China 3 Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305 -8572, Japan 4 Department Department of Pulp and Paper Technology, Institute of Technology and Science Bandung, Jl. Ganesha Boulevard Lot -A1 Kota Deltamas, Cikarang Pusat, Bekasi, Jawa Barat, 17530, Indonesia * e-mail: abdul -halim.xm@alumni.tsukuba.ac.jp Cellulose sponge was fabricated by regenerating cellulose from a xanthate solution. The solution, which contained sodium phosphate particles as a template to create sponge porosity, was dried at 55, 65, 75 and 85 °C for 2, 4, 6, and 8 h. During the initial and last stages of drying, mass transfer was controlled in terms of temperature and concentration differences, respectively. The activation energy and pre-exponential factor of the mass transfer coefficient were -51,841.947 kJ mol -1 and 7.26×10 9 m -2 h -1 , respectively. Regenerated cellulose contained a crystalline type of cellulose II, and the crystallinity was independent of drying conditions. The cellulose was unregenerated at a low drying temperature (T≤55 °C) and short drying period (t≤2h). At higher temperatures and longer drying periods, no relationship between temperature and physical strength was observed. Cellulose nanofiber (CNF) was added to the xanthate solution at a ratio of 1:100 of CNF to linter cellulose for xanthation; however, this did not affect the physical strength of the cellulose sponge for both mechanically and chemically fabricated CNF. Keywords: Cellulose nanofiber, Cellulose sponge, Drying, Physical strength, Regenerated cellulose INTRODUCTION Cellulose is a biomaterial mainly produced by the plant. Its sustainability, abundant availability, biocompatibility, high strength, and zero-carbon footprint