The effects of sucrose on the elasticity and thermo reversible gel-sol transition in agarose and gelatin gels were studied. The concentration and temperature dependence of the elastic modulus was analysed by current theories of gel elasticity. The gel-sol transition observed by differential scanning calorimetry was discussed or the basis of a zipper model approach. It was suggested that the number of junction zones increased, the size of each junction zone decreased, and the rotational freedom of a link in a zipper decreased by the addition of sucrose.
The elastic modulus E of agarose gels with different molecular weights are determined as a function of temperature. E increases slowly from 5°C up to a certain temperature Tmax, which depends on the molecular weight, and then decreases gradually at first and then rapidly. Tmax is shifted to higher temperatures with increasing molecular weight. E is discussed in terms of an entropic and an energetic contribution. The entropic part decreases while the energetic part increases with increasing temperature.
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