Characterization of Physicochemical and Functional Properties of Gamma Irradiated Acacia polyacantha Gum

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of gamma radiation doses (10 KGy, 30 KGy and 50 KGy) on the aqueous solutions of A. polyacantha gum samples having different concentrations; 10, 30, and 50% (w/v). The results have shown that the gamma radiation has decreased the pH of the samples regardless of the dose or the concentration of the aqueous gum samples. The intrinsic viscosity of 30% (w/v) aqueous solution of A. polyacantha gum irradiated with 50 KGy was greatly increased whereas the one for 10% (w/v) irradiated with same dose was observably decreased. On the other hand, the values of the optical rotation of γ-irradiated samples do not follow a specific trend as they decreased in case of 10% w/v (-10 versus -15) and remained almost unchanged in case of 30% w/v (-15 versus -15) sample compared to raw A. polyacantha. Furthermore, the FTIR spectra do not reveal any noticeable differences between raw and γ-irradiated samples.