Method for producing carboxymethyl cellulose or salt thereof, and binding agent for electrode

Abstract

Provided is a carboxymethyl cellulose or a salt thereof, in which when the carboxymethyl cellulose or the salt thereof is used as a binding agent for an electrode of a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, defects, such as pinholes, on a surface of the electrode are reduced and a battery including the electrode has a good capacity retention. A method for producing a carboxymethyl cellulose or a salt thereof includes an alkali cellulose formation step (step 1) of allowing cellulose and an alkali to react with each other in the presence of a mixed solvent containing water and an organic solvent, an etherification step (step 2) of allowing the resulting alkali cellulose and an etherifying agent to react with each other, a purification step (step 3) of washing and drying the resulting reaction mixture, and a pulverization step (step 4) of pulverizing the resulting purified product. In the method, the step 1 is conducted for a reaction time of 60 minutes or more and 120 minutes or less under conditions of a pH of 9 or more and a reaction temperature of 5° C. or higher and 25° C. or lower.