<![CDATA[Depolymerization kinetics of κ-carrageenan by ozone treatment has been studied at various pHs and times. The purified κ-carrageenan with the initial molecular weight of 271 kDa was dispersed in water to form (1 % w/v) solution. Ozone with 80±2 ppm concentration and constant flow rate of 3 L.min-1 was bubbled into the κ-carrageenan solution. The experiments were conducted at pH of 3, 7, and 10 at different times (5, 10, 15, and 20 minutes) of ozonation. The viscosity of the solution was measured using Ubbelohde capillary viscometer, which was then used to find the number-average molecular weight by Mark-Houwink equation. The number-average molecular weight data was treated using zero, first, and the second-order reaction kinetics model, to obtain the kinetics of κ-carrageenan depolymerization. The depolymerization is assumed to occur by random scission. The results show that the kinetics rate constant of κ-carrageenan depolymerization is higher at lower pHs. The second-order model is more suitable for describing the kinetics of depolymerization of κ-carrageenan by ozonation process. The rate constants for the second-order kinetics model are 5.45×10-4 min-1, 1.27×10-4 min-1, and 7.21×10-5 min-1 for pH 3, 7, and 10, respectively. The actual values of reaction order under acid and alkali conditions are ranging from 1.88 to 1.90. ]]>
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