Characterization of mucin interaction with three viscosity grades of sodium carboxymethylcellulose. Comparison between rheological and tensile testing

Abstract In a previous work, attempts were made to correlate the rheological interaction between polymer and mucin with the detachment force, measured (with tensile testing) for the same polymer-mucin combination. The polymers examined included natural gums, semisynthetic derivatives and synthetic products. The lack of correlation between rheological and tensile parameters was attributed to the diversity of chemical nature of the polymers considered. In the present work the correlation between rheological and tensile parameters of three viscosity grades of the same polymer (sodium carboxymethylcellulose) was studied. Isoviscous solutions of the three viscosity grades were analyzed for rheological interaction with mucin (with a CS rheometer) and for detachment force (with tensile testing). The relationship found between the rheological and tensile parameters proved that the strengthening of the polymer-mucin interface is linked to the rheological changes that occur when the polymer is mixed with mucin.