Effect of structural factors and adsorbed water on the radiolysis of polysaccharides. 1. Radiation-chemical transformations of the macromolecules

The effect of structural factors on the radiation-chemical degradation and modification of native polysaccharides is investigated under standardized conditions and a wide range of absorbed doses. It is established that the amorphous parts of the polymers, which contain adsorbed water, are the first to be broken down. The degradation and modification yields of the polysaccharides are determined by the density and by the nature of the distribution of amorphous regions, because these parameters determine the availability of water and O2 to the macroradicals and the availability of OH(H) radicals from water to some carbon atom in the glucopyranose ring