Journal of Chemical and Engineering Data, Vol.55, No.7, 2424-2427, 2010
Viscosity and Solubility Behavior of the Polysaccharide Inulin in Water, Water plus Dimethyl Sulfoxide, and Water plus Isopropanol Media
Inulin, the beta (2 -> 1) fructosyl fructose unit-containing polysaccharide, exhibits interesting solution properties. In this study, viscosity and solubility behaviors of the polysaccharide have been examined in water, water + dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), and water + isopropanol (IP) media. The compact (globular) molecular configuration of the biopolymer in aqueous medium becomes nonspherical and elongated in both water + DMSO and water + IP with an increasing proportion of the nonaqueous solvents in the media. The solubility of inulin is a weak endothermic process in an aqueous medium which in the presence of IP in water becomes progressively exothermic by way of favorable molecular aggregation. The solubility decreases by the presence of IP in the mixed solvent medium.