| Abstract: | Aeromonas (A) gum, an acidic heteropolysaccharide, formed aggregates easily in NaCl aqueous solution. A novel solvent of the A gum, which can prevent aggregation, was found to be 0.20M urea/0.25M NaOH aqueous solution. The weight‐average molecular weight (Mw), radius of gyration (〈s2〉1/2), and intrinsic viscosity ([η]) of the samples were determined in 0.20M urea/0.25M NaOH aqueous solution at 25°C by light scattering (Mw, 〈s2〉1/2) and viscometry ([η]). The values of Mw, 〈s2〉1/2, and [η] were close to those in 0.20M lithium chloride/dimethylsulfoxide, in which the A gum exists as a semiflexible single chain, implying the same conformation for the A gum in 0.20M urea/0.25M NaOH aqueous solution. The results revealed that 0.20M urea/0.25M NaOH aqueous solution is a good solvent, which effectively avoids the aggregates of the A gum in aqueous solution. Moreover, it can be used to investigate the solution properties and chain conformation of water‐insoluble polysaccharides or the polysaccharides that are easily aggregated in aqueous systems. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 97: 1710–1713, 2005 |
