Enhanced anisotropic ordering and phase separation in lyotropic polysaccharide blends

Abstract 2 H n.m.r. spectroscopy is employed to characterize the mesomorphic behaviour of hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) in D 2 O. This analysis is further extended to ternary solutions containing HPC and xanthan gum (XG). A compositional range over which addition of XG to HPC enhances single-phase anisotropic ordering is reported. Convoluted spectra representative of HPC-rich and XG-rich components are observed at some blend and solution concentrations, suggesting that phase separation occurs between these two lyotropic polysaccharides.