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Updated: Aug 14, 2026

Rapid High Throughput Amylose Determination in Freeze Dried Potato Tuber Samples
Published on: October 14, 2013
Comparative assessment of potato starch dissolution and functionalization in conventional and water-modified deep
Mohamed El Farkhani1,2, Omar Azougagh1, Mohamed El Miz1
1Laboratory of Molecular Chemistry, Materials and Environment (LMCME), Department of Chemistry, Faculty Multidisciplinary Nador, Mohammed 1st University P. B. 300 Nador 62700 Morocco Mohamed.elfarkhani@ump.ac.ma.
None:
Native starch is insoluble in most conventional organic solvents because of its semi-crystalline structure stabilized by extensive hydrogen bonding, which limits homogeneous chemical modification. In this study, two deep eutectic solvents (DESs) based on benzyltriethylammonium bromide (BTEAB)/urea and BTEAB/urea containing 10 wt% water (DES-H2O) were developed as environmentally friendly media for starch dissolution and subsequent esterification with maleic anhydride. The DESs acted simultaneously as solvent, reaction medium, and catalyst, eliminating the need for additional catalysts or volatile organic solvents. The water-containing DES exhibited superior starch dissolution efficiency, dissolving up to 16 wt% starch at 70 °C. Structural characterization by XRD confirmed the disruption of the native crystalline structure and the formation of an amorphous material after DES treatment. Successful esterification was verified by FTIR-ATR and NMR analyses through the appearance of characteristic maleate ester signals. SEM observations revealed significant morphological changes following dissolution and modification, while thermal analysis showed reduced thermal stability associated with starch functionalization. These results demonstrate that water-modified BTEAB/urea DESs provide an efficient and sustainable platform for the homogeneous dissolution and esterification of starch under mild conditions.
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Intermolecular Forces in Solutions
When the strengths of the intermolecular forces of attraction between solute and solvent species in a solution are no different than those present in the separated components, the solution is formed with no accompanying energy change. Such a solution is called an ideal solution. A mixture of ideal gases (or gases such as helium and argon,...
Solubility
A solution is a homogeneous mixture composed of a solvent, the major component, and a solute, the minor component. The physical state of a solution—solid, liquid, or gas—is typically the same as that of the solvent. Solute concentrations are often described with qualitative terms such as dilute (of relatively low concentration) and concentrated (of relatively high concentration).
In a solution, the solute particles (molecules, atoms, and/or ions)...

