Pulsed electric field-assisted modification of pectin from sugar beet pulp

This current work is concerned with the modification of sugar beet pulp (SBP) pectin assisted by pulsed electric filed (PEF) without solvent. Pectin-arachates with degree of esterification (DE) ranging from 49 to 84 were prepared in one-step modification. The results showed that the DE of pectin derivatives increased significantly with the PEF intensity from 18 to 30 kV cm(1 and total specific energy input from 124 to 345 J mL(1. Evidence of modification of pectin was provided by FT-IR, X-ray diffraction patterns and NMR spectra. Thermogravimetric investigation of modified pectin indicated a higher thermal stability than the untreated one. Results revealed that PEF technology is a promising method for industrial manufacture of pectin derivatives.