ABSTRACT
Asclepias syriaca L., has been recently grown in Quebec, Canada, for commercial applications. Because of lack of information on the chemical composition of this fiber, a study has been conducted to isolate the components using three different procedures of extraction. Then, these components have been analyzed by different techniques, including FTIR, SEM, XPS, and GC/MS. Moreover, the crystallinity index (CI) of the cellulose component has been measured according to well-known XRD methods. Experimental results shows that Asclepias syriaca is constituted of 40–45% cellulose, 35–40% hemicellulose, 15% lignin, 3% free sugars, and 3% wax. The CI of cellulose lays between 60% and 70%.