Insight into morphological, physicochemical and spectroscopic properties of β-chitin nanocrystalline structures

abstract

We systematically investigated the effect of β-chitin (BCH) particle size on the preparation of nanocrystals/ nanowhiskers (CWH) by acid hydrolysis. Regardless this variable, CWH aqueous suspension exhibited outstanding stability and the average degree of acetylation remained nearly constant after the acid treatment. In contrast, the morphology, dimensions, crystallinity, and molecular weight of CHW were significantly affect by the particle size. Although needle-like crystals have predominated, BCH particles sizes significantly affected the dimensions and asymmetry of CWH, as confirmed by the rheological and NMR relaxation (T2) behaviors. Ac- cording to different SSNMR approaches, the acid hydrolysis meaningless affected the local chain conformation, while the spatial freedom of BCH intersheets, rated upon the mobility of methyl segments, was taken as evidence of higher permeability of acid into small particle sizes. Thus, this study demonstrated the importance of stan- dardizing the surface/bulk proportions of β-chitin aiming to predict and control the CWH morphology and related properties.

authors

Facchinatto, William Marcondes; dos Santos, Danilo Martins; Bukzem, Andrea de Lacerda; Moraes, Tiago Bueno; Habitzreuter, Filipe; deAzevedo, Eduardo Ribeiro; Colnago, Luiz Alberto; Campana-Filho, Sérgio Paulo

our authors

Share this project:

Related Publications

We use cookies for marketing activities and to offer you a better experience. By clicking “Accept Cookies” you agree with our cookie policy. Read about how we use cookies by clicking "Privacy and Cookie Policy".