Gums in industry

BeMiller, J.N. 1973. Quince seed, psyllium seed, flax seed and okra gums. In Industrial Gumes (R.L. Whistler and J.N. BeMiller, eds), 2nd Ed. Academic Press, New York. 

This paper reviews the literature on gum karaya (from Sterculia urens) and describes the varied applications of the gum in industry—as a food stabilizer, meat binder, bulk laxative, denture powder, and textile size. Cum karaya and related Sterculia gums have been investigated by partition chromatography. Cum karaya is an acetylated polysaccharide of high molecular weight, its relative insolubility, viscosity characteristics, swelling properties, and the effect of particle size on solution characteristics are reviewed. 

I his paper is based, for the most part, upon a review of the literature and is not intended as a comprehensive treatise. Actually, original investigational work relative to the chemical structure of tragacanth and other gums has not been so well defined as in other fields of research. Studies of physical, rather than chemical, properties have perhaps thus far been more helpful in discovering new ways for broadening the applications of this gum in industry and medicine. Nevertheless, the gum is industrially one of the most important and, incidentally, one of the oldest drugs known to man. It was described by Theophrastus several centuries before the Christian era. 

McNeely, W.H. and Kang, K.S., "Xanthan and some other biosynthetic gums". In Industrial Gums, whistler, R. L. and BeMiller, J. N., Eds., Second Edition, Academic Press, New York, 1973, pp. 473-497. 

Gums are used in industry because their aqueous solutions or dispersions possess suspending and stabilising properties. In addition, gums may produce gels or act as emulsifiers, adhesives, flocculants, binders, film formers, lubricants, or friction reducers, depending on the shape and chemical nature of the particular gum (2). Considerable research has been carried out to relate the stmeture and shape (conformation) of some gums to their solution properties (3,4). 

Lubricants. Petroleum lubricants continue to be the mainstay for automotive, industrial, and process lubricants. Synthetic oils are used extensively in industry and for jet engines they, of course, are made from hydrocarbons. Since the viscosity index (a measure of the viscosity behavior of a lubricant with change in temperature) of lube oil fractions from different cmdes may vary from +140 to as low as —300, additional refining steps are needed. To improve the viscosity index (VI), lube oil fractions are subjected to solvent extraction, solvent dewaxing, solvent deasphalting, and hydrogenation. Furthermore, automotive lube oils typically contain about 12—14% additives. These additives maybe oxidation inhibitors to prevent formation of gum and varnish, corrosion inhibitors, or detergent dispersants, and viscosity index improvers. The United States consumption of lubricants is shown in Table 7. 

In the gum rosin process, pine trees are wounded to stimulate the flow of gum. V-shaped slashes are cut through the bark, and the exudate is collected in a bucket below the slash. Production is stimulated by painting sulfuric acid on the slashes. The oleoresin (exudate) is separated by distillation into gum spidts of turpentine and gum rosin. The gum turpentine industry has decreased in importance in the 1990s because it is labor-intensive. The process is carried out in Russia, the People s Repubflc of China, Indonesia, Portugal, Brazil, and Mexico. 

Glicksman, M., Utilization of Natural Polysaccahride Gums in the Food Industry. Advances in Food Research, 11, 170, 1962. 

The general chemistry of the galactomannans has been reviewed by Whistler and Smart" and others,7 " and papers frequently appear that discuss the uses of guar and locust-bean gums in various industrial applications, such as in cosmetics9 and food.10,11 Most of this article deals with investigations of the structural chemistry of galac-... 

There have been no fatalities in industry attributed to bismuth and it is regarded as relatively non-toxic for a heavy metal.246 The toxic problems which have been recorded have in the main been iatrogenic illnesses. A characteristic blue-black line on the gums, the bismuth line , which may persist for years, is a feature of bismuth overdosage. Soluble salts are excreted via urine and may cause mild kidney damage. Less soluble salts may be excreted in the faeces, which may be black in colour due to the presence of bismuth sulfide. Table 31 contains some toxicity data. 

Uses n-Butyl alcohol is used extensively in a number of industries. For instance, it is used as a solvent in industries associated with the manufacture of paints, varnishes, synthetic resins, gums, pharmaceuticals, vegetable oils, dyes, and alkaloids. n-Butyl alcohol also finds use in the manufacture of artificial leather, rubber, and plastic cements, shellac, raincoats, perfumes, and photographic films. 

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