Thickening Properties of Corn Fiber Gum With Other Carbohydrate Polymers

Recently a great interest has developed in formulating products by blending a mixture of gums to produce a desired product, combining the advantage of each gum component and also creating some additional properties. The rheological properties of these mixed systems are critically important for both scientific and industrial aspects; for example, the stabilization of emulsions in food or cosmetics depends considerably on the viscosity of the mixed system. Considering the excellent emulsifying ability and low solution viscosity of corn fiber gum (CFG, isolated arabinoxylan), it is important to study its viscosifying action when mixed with an aqueous solution of different polysaccharides, or their derivatives, to broaden its applications for many food and non-food uses. The objective of the present work is to study the thickening properties of CFG when it is mixed with either anionic, cationic, or neutral carbohydrate polymers, and to propose a possible model of interaction in their aqueous solution.