Miscibility of Starch and Low Molecular Weight Poly (ethyleneglycol) Blends in Aqueous Medium

Abstract

The miscibility of starch and poly(ethyleneglycol) (PEG)
blends in water were investigated by viscosity, density
and refractive index studies. The physical interaction
parameters like poly-solvent and blend-solvent have been
calculated using viscosity and density data. Starch/PEG
blends were found to be miscible in all studied ratios. The
study also revealed that variation of temperature does not
affect the miscibility of starch and PEG blends in the
aqueous solution significantly. The miscibility occurs due
to presence of hydroxyl-hydroxyl interactions in the
blends. The result obtained reveals that PEG can be
effectively used as gelating agent in starch solution.
Keywords: Miscibility, viscosity, polymer interaction, starch, PEG