Kinetic study on the alkaline degradation of amylose

Abstract

AbstractThe kinetics of end‐wise degradation of amylose has been studied varying base concentration and temperature. At 100°C, the rate of peeling increases with hydroxyl ion concentration up to 0.1 N base concentration, remaining constant thereafter, whereas the rate of termination continues to increase beyond this point levelling off finally to a constant value at approximately 1.5 N base concentration. As a consequence, the ratio of peeling to termination is sufficiently high in 0.01–0.1 N sodium hydroxide solutions to effect total degradation of amylose. The kinetic pattern is interpreted in terms of mono‐ and di‐ions of the reducing end‐groups acting as reactive intermediates. The potential application of the peeling reaction to structural studies of polysaccharides is discussed.