Development of New Alkylated Carrageenan Derivatives: Physicochemical, Rheological, and Emulsification Properties Assessment

In this research, amphiphilic derivatives of kappa carrageenan (KC) were synthesized by hydrophobic modification with an alkyl halide (1-Octyl chloride). Three hydrophobic polymers with different degrees of substitution (DS) were obtained by the Williamson etherification reaction in an alkaline medium. The effect of the molar ratio (R = reagent/polymer) on the DS was investigated at different ratios (1, 2, and 3). The KC derivatives (KCRs) were characterized by different techniques such as FT-IR, 1 H-NMR, X-ray Diffraction, Scanning electron microscopy, and a rheological assessment. The FT-IR and 1 HNMR analyses confirmed the binding of the hydrophobic groups onto the KC molecule. The degrees of substitution calculated by 1 H-NMR demonstrated that the derivative KCR3 (0.68) presented a higher degree of substitution compared to KCR1(0.45) and KCR2 (0.53). The XRD and SEM analyses revealed that the alkaline etherification conditions did not alter the morphological and crystallographic properties, as well as the rheological behavior of the obtained derivatives. The amphiphilic character of the KCRs was investigated using a conductivity method which revealed that the molecular aggregation occurred above the critical aggregation concentration (CAC). Decreasing CAC values of 0.15% (KCR1), 0.11% (KCR2) and 0.08% (KCR3)with the degree of substitution (DS) were found. Furthermore, KCR’s derivatives greatly improved the stability of oil/water emulsions as the droplet size decreased with increasing DS. The derivative (KCR3) with higher DS, showed a greater amphiphilic character, and improved emulsifying power.