Abstract
γ-ray-irradiated pullulan macromolecules acquire properties of an anionic polyelectrolyte and, upon aggregation with the oppositely charged surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium hydroxide, are found to precipitate according to their molecular weight. This provides a convenient means for obtaining polymer fractions with a narrower molecular-weight distribution than those of the original samples. The method can be employed to obtain fractions of radiation-modified pullulan required in the production of a blood-plasma substitute. Anionic properties of γ-ray-irradiated pullulan also manifest themselves in interactions with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) in aqueous solution, which result in a significant change in the viscous behavior of the polysaccharide. Upon an increase in the concentration of γ-ray-irradiated pullulan in an SDS solution, the reduced viscosity of the polymer first increases and, upon reaching a certain concentration, C*, decreases. The C* values were found to be dependent on the molecular weight of the polymer. The phenomena observed are discussed in terms of the general theory of polymer solutions within which C* is treated as a critical concentration at which interpenetration of polymer molecules becomes important. Unperturbed dimensions of γ-ray-irradiated pullulan macromolecules were estimated on the basis of experimental viscosimetric data.
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Received: 29 March 2001 Accepted: 31 July 2001
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Shingel, K., Petrov, P. Behavior of γ-ray-irradiated pullulan in aqueous solutions of cationic (cetyltrimethylammonium hydroxide) and anionic (sodium dodecyl sulfate) surfactants. Colloid Polym Sci 280, 176–182 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-001-0599-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-001-0599-2