Surface activity and micellization properties of chitosan-succinyl derivatives

Surface active chitosan-succinyl derivatives were prepared by incorporating hydrophilic succinyl group and different hydrophobic alkyl chains into chitosan through covalent bonding. Chemical structures of the derivatives were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy. Surface activity and critical micelle concentration values of the chitosan-succinyl derivatives were characterized by surface tension, conductivity and fluorescence measurements. Due to the surface inactivity and insoluble in common solvent or water, the application of chitosan is still a problem. The incorporation of succinyl group and alkyl chains significantly improves the surface activity of chitosan. Moreover, increasing the hydrophobic chain length leads to a smaller particle size and a higher stability of the emulsions of chitosan-succinyl derivatives. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.