Xanthan gum has a wide range of applications in more than a dozen fields such as food, petroleum, medicine, daily-use chemicals, and its high degree of commercialization and wide application range make it unmatched by any other microbial polysaccharide.
Xanthan gum is a light yellow to white flowable powder with a slight smell. Easily soluble in cold and hot water, the solution is neutral, resistant to freezing and thawing, and insoluble in ethanol. Disperse and emulsify in water to become a stable hydrophilic viscous colloid. The US FDA approved it as an unlimited food additive in 1969. In 1980, the European Economic Community also approved it as a food emulsifier and stabilizer. What is the role of xanthan gum?
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Food industry
Xanthan gum is added to many foods as stabilizers, emulsifiers, suspending agents, thickeners and processing aids. Xanthan gum can control the rheology, structure, flavor and appearance of the product, and its pseudoplasticity can ensure a good taste, so it is widely used in salad dressings, bread, dairy products, frozen foods, beverages, condiments, brewing, Confectionery, cakes, soups and canned foods. In recent years, people in more developed countries are often worried that the calorific value of food is too high and make themselves fat. Xanthan gum dispels this worry because it cannot be directly degraded by the human body. In addition, according to a Japanese report in 1985, a comparative test was conducted on eleven food additives, among which xanthan gum was the most effective anti-cancer agent.
Daily chemical industry
Xanthan gum molecule contains a large number of hydrophilic groups, which is a good surface active substance, and has the functions of anti-oxidation and prevention of skin aging. Therefore, almost most high-end cosmetics use xanthan gum as its main Functional ingredients. In addition, xanthan gum can also be used as a component of toothpaste to substantially thicken and shape, reducing tooth surface wear.
Medical aspects
Xanthan gum is a functional component in the internationally popular microcapsule drug capsule, which plays an important role in controlling the sustained release of drugs; due to its own strong hydrophilicity and water retention, there are many specific medical operations. Applications, such as forming a dense water film to avoid skin infections; reducing patient thirst after radiotherapy, etc.
Application in industry and agriculture
In the petroleum industry, due to its strong pseudoplasticity, a low-concentration xanthan gum (0.5%) aqueous solution can maintain the viscosity of the drilling fluid and control its rheological properties, so the viscosity is extremely small at the high-speed rotating drill bit, which saves power ; While maintaining a high viscosity in the relatively static drilling site to prevent the well wall from collapsing. And because of its excellent salt resistance and heat resistance, it is widely used in drilling in special environments such as oceans and high-salt zones, and can be used as an oil displacement agent to reduce dead oil areas and increase oil recovery.
Xanthan gum was first developed internationally by the United States, followed by France, Japan, and the United Kingdom. At present, there are about 20,000 tons of food-grade xanthan gum in the world, and 20,000 tons for industrial use. Since the 1980s, the demand for xanthan gum has been increasing at a rate of 10% per year, and more and more manufacturers are engaged in the production of xanthan gum. Its wide application field and high price are unmatched by many other microbial polysaccharides.