ETHAPOLAN - A NEW MICROBIAL EXOPOLYSACCHARIDE FOR OIL INDUSTRY

Ethapolan, a new high-viscous exopolysaccharide, was obtained in the c ourse of microbial synthesis. Its chemical content and some characteri stics of its solutions are explored in the present study. By its struc ture ethapolan may be considered a polysaccharide of xanthan type. Mor e definitely, as compared to xanthan, the emulsifying efficiency and h ydrophobic nature of ethapolan may be attributed to the presence of th e fatty acids residues and to 6-desoxysaccharide-rhamnose residues. It was found that a few factors impact the increasing viscosity of ethap olan solutions: first, the presence of the cations; second, low sheari ng rates; and, finally, low pH values. Ethapolan is resistant to heati ng. On this basis, it may be concluded that ethapolan appears to be a universal and quite competitive microbial exopolysaccharide for the oi l industry.