The influence of deacetylation degree of konjac glucomannan on rheological and gel properties of konjac glucomannan/κ-carrageenan mixed system

The rheological and textural properties of κ-carrageenan (CAR) and konjac glucomannan (KGM) with definite deacetylation degree (DD) mixed system in the presence of potassium chloride (KCl) were investigated to study the influence of deacetylation degree on KGM, CAR and KCl mixed system. The results revealed that the zero-shear viscosities of the mixed sol system increased firstly and then decreased with the gradual increase of DD. Besides, the sols had the capability of being transformed into irreversible gel by heating them at 80 °C for 30 min and then cooling to room temperature. The DD of KGM did have impacts on the characteristics of the ensuing hydrogels. That is, the mixed gels showed an initial increase and ensuing decrease in gel strength over DD, reaching the maximum with a DD of 21.07%. Overall, by controlling the deacetylation degree of KGM, the gel behaviors of the mixed system can be regulated.