Abstract: | Thermostimulated current spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) were used to study starch–water systems with moisture contents of 0–50% (on a total weight basis). DSC enabled the calculation of the amounts of bound and free water. The maximum quantity of bound water was detected for a 30% humidity sample. The existence of interactions between water and starch was proved and found to be weakened for samples containing more than 30% water. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 2860–2865, 2002 |