Surface coating of chitosan of different degree of acetylation on non surface sized writing and printing grade paper

Abstract Chitosan is a renewable biopolymer which can be applied on the surface of writing and printing (W&P) grade paper to enhance its different properties. A variety of chitosan is available based on degree of acetylation (DA), molecular weight, viscosity, etc. DA has a profound effect on the performance of chitosan in many applications. Present study compared the performance of different DA chitosan for surface application of W&P grade paper. Chitosan samples of 23%, 16% and 6% DA were studied for their impact on various physical and surface properties of W&P grade paper. Surface coating of chitosan was done at 1.6 ± 0.2 g/m2 (lower dose) and 2.3 ± 0.3 g/m2 (higher dose) on W&P grade paper. Some properties including air permeance, TEA, showed considerable effect of DA in which high DA chitosan outperformed the low DA. Broadly, chitosan with different DA had varied impact on individual properties of paper.