Factors Affecting Solution Properties of Hemicelluloses

Hemicelluloses are polysaccharide cell wall constituents of land plants composed of a branched β-1,4-xylan backbone with pendant L-arabinose and (usually) 4-O-methyl-D-glucuronic acid units, the latter giving the molecule the properties of a polyelectrolyte. In our work on structure and fractionation of hemicelluloses we have become very aware of the importance of such factors as temperature and trace quantities of metal ions on the solution properties of the hemicelluloses, and this paper describes a preliminary investigation of such effects.