In an aqueous environment, carbohydrate polymers are surrounded by hydration shells consisting of water molecules that are sometimes called "bound". When polymer solutions are subjected to low temperatures, a part of water turns into ice, another part remains in the biopolymer phase and is called "nonfreezing water". Thermodynamic analysis of water freezing shows that the amount of non-freezing water does not reflect the amount of bound water, neither can it be used as a measure of strength of polymer-water interactions. Upon deep cooling, crystallization of water should desiccate polymers more than is observed in experiment. The reason for existence of non-freezing water is an interplay between the crystallization of water and the glass transition in biopolymers that prevents dehydration.
Keywords: Bound water; Differential scanning calorimetry; Glass transition; Heat capacity; Hydration; Nonfreezing water.
Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.