Study on the heterogeneous degradation of chitosan with hydrogen peroxide under the catalysis of phosphotungstic acid

The oxidative degradation of chitosan with H2O2 aqueous solution was carried out under the catalysis of phosphotungstic acid in heterogeneous phase. The optimal conditions of degradation were determined by orthogonal tests. The structure of the degraded product was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectra (FTIR), diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The mechanism of the degradation was correlated with cleavage of the glycosidic bond. The experimental results showed that chitosan can be effectively degraded with H2O2 under the catalysis of phosphotungstic acid. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.