6.7 Applications
141
6.7.13 Polymeric Electrolytes
Biopolymer-based electrolytes are favoured as energy storage devices for their biocompatibility, renewable source, relative abundance, ease of processing and relative
low cost. Iota carrageenan has been investigated for use as a polymeric electrolyte.
This particular form of carrageenan shows good prospects in this field of application
due to its level of sulfation and 25–30% anhydrogalactose component which results
in a medium gel strength with a moderate level of amorphous structure leaving a sufficient amount of functional groups available for interactions with charge carriers,
making it more suitable as a polymer electrolyte (Ghani et al. 2019). Carrageenan
can be dissolved in water to form a solid-state electrolyte. This makes it possible
for low-temperature processing which is desirable in lowering processing costs in
such applications. Purification of the iota carrageenan significantly affects the electrochemical stability. In the purified form, iota carrageenan attained a conductivity
of 1.57 × 10
−5 S cm
−1 while the unpurified form was 1.65 × 10
−6 S cm
−1 (Ghani
et al. 2019).
From all the applications of carrageenans discussed so far, applications based on
the rheological properties and viscosity- and gel-forming properties are the most well
established. The bioactive properties such as antimicrobial and anticancer properties
need further investigations to understand and possibly extend the effectiveness and
mechanism of action. Particularly important is to understand how these activities are
affected by variables such as extraction conditions, molecular weight and species.
It is indeed desirable to relate the different bioactivities of carrageenans with
specific chemical properties or structure. However, there is much yet to be known
about the structural activity relationships of sulfated polysaccharides. In attempts to
understand the structural relationship with the bioactivity, one approach is to make
inferences from similar but simpler structures. For example, studying more linear
simpler structures and relating the bioactivities of such to similar more complex
branched structure, such has been done for some sulfated polysaccharides such as
fucoidan (Jiao et al. 2011).
6.8 Commercial Production
Carrageenan is one of the relatively well-explored sulfated polysaccharides of algae.
It mainly finds commercial applications in food as the largest market for carrageenan.
However, its potential applications also extend beyond food industry to others such
as cosmetics and nutraceuticals and possibly in the future pharmaceuticals. The total
market for carrageenan is valued at over 300 million USD (McHugh 2003). Demand
for carrageenan is further boosted by the need for a substitute for a replacement for
animal-sourced gelatin with the outbreak of mad cow disease (bovine Spongiform
encephalopathy). Its thermostable property makes it form more stable gels in hotter
environments compared to gelatine.
141
6.7.13 Polymeric Electrolytes
Biopolymer-based electrolytes are favoured as energy storage devices for their biocompatibility, renewable source, relative abundance, ease of processing and relative
low cost. Iota carrageenan has been investigated for use as a polymeric electrolyte.
This particular form of carrageenan shows good prospects in this field of application
due to its level of sulfation and 25–30% anhydrogalactose component which results
in a medium gel strength with a moderate level of amorphous structure leaving a sufficient amount of functional groups available for interactions with charge carriers,
making it more suitable as a polymer electrolyte (Ghani et al. 2019). Carrageenan
can be dissolved in water to form a solid-state electrolyte. This makes it possible
for low-temperature processing which is desirable in lowering processing costs in
such applications. Purification of the iota carrageenan significantly affects the electrochemical stability. In the purified form, iota carrageenan attained a conductivity
of 1.57 × 10
−5 S cm
−1 while the unpurified form was 1.65 × 10
−6 S cm
−1 (Ghani
et al. 2019).
From all the applications of carrageenans discussed so far, applications based on
the rheological properties and viscosity- and gel-forming properties are the most well
established. The bioactive properties such as antimicrobial and anticancer properties
need further investigations to understand and possibly extend the effectiveness and
mechanism of action. Particularly important is to understand how these activities are
affected by variables such as extraction conditions, molecular weight and species.
It is indeed desirable to relate the different bioactivities of carrageenans with
specific chemical properties or structure. However, there is much yet to be known
about the structural activity relationships of sulfated polysaccharides. In attempts to
understand the structural relationship with the bioactivity, one approach is to make
inferences from similar but simpler structures. For example, studying more linear
simpler structures and relating the bioactivities of such to similar more complex
branched structure, such has been done for some sulfated polysaccharides such as
fucoidan (Jiao et al. 2011).
6.8 Commercial Production
Carrageenan is one of the relatively well-explored sulfated polysaccharides of algae.
It mainly finds commercial applications in food as the largest market for carrageenan.
However, its potential applications also extend beyond food industry to others such
as cosmetics and nutraceuticals and possibly in the future pharmaceuticals. The total
market for carrageenan is valued at over 300 million USD (McHugh 2003). Demand
for carrageenan is further boosted by the need for a substitute for a replacement for
animal-sourced gelatin with the outbreak of mad cow disease (bovine Spongiform
encephalopathy). Its thermostable property makes it form more stable gels in hotter
environments compared to gelatine.