Miscibility studies of chitosan and starch blends in buffer solution

Abstract

The miscibility of chitosan (CS) and starch in buffer solution (CH 3COOH and CH 3COONa) has been investigated by viscosity, density and refractive index methods at 303K, 313K, and 323K. Various interaction parameters such as polymer-polymer and blend-solvent interaction parameters and heat of mixing have been calculated using viscosity and density data. The results indicated the existence of positive interactions in the blend polymer solutions and that they are miscible below 40% of starch compositions. The study also revealed that variation of temperature does have significant effect on the miscibility of chitosan and starch blends. 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.