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The acetylation and enzymatic degradation of starch films
Author(s) -
Parandoosh Shohreh,
Hudson Samuel M.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.1993.070480504
Subject(s) - starch , acetic anhydride , degradation (telecommunications) , formic acid , ultimate tensile strength , aqueous solution , polymer , chemistry , polymer chemistry , acetylation , acetic acid , amylase , enzyme , materials science , organic chemistry , chemical engineering , nuclear chemistry , chromatography , biochemistry , composite material , catalysis , telecommunications , computer science , engineering , gene
The preparation of films from starch and their degradation by amylase enzymes is described. Starch acetate was prepared by acetylation of starch with a pyridine/acetic anhydride mixture. The resulting polymer was cast into films from solutions of 90% formic acid. A series of films with a range of acetyl content were then exposed to buffered amylase solutions and the retained tensile strength measured. It was found that with a sufficient acetyl content the wet strength of the films was maintained in the aqueous solutions, but that the acetyl content was sufficiently low enough to permit degradation by a mixture of alpha and beta amylases within a period of 1 h. These films could be useful as membranes in bioreactors, which could be degraded at will by the addition of enzymes to the system. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.