RESOLUTION OF INFRARED-SPECTRA AND KINETIC-ANALYSIS OF MUTAROTATION OF D-GLUCOSE IN WATER BY SEQUENTIAL RANK ANALYSIS

Mutarotation of D-glucose in water has been studied by attenuated tota l internal reflectance Fourier-transform infrared spectrometry. Infrar ed spectra of solutions of both alpha-D-glucose and beta-D-glucose in water were acquired at regular time intervals. The spectral profiles o f the evolving mixtures were first-order differentiated and sequential rank analysis was used to obtain the concentration profiles of the an omers. The concentration profiles were subsequently used to obtain res olved infrared spectra of the two anomers. A crucial assumption for th e resolution procedure used in this work is that the spectral peaks of the pure anomers are symmetric in the proximity of local maxima or mi nima. Rate constants for the conversion of alpha- to beta-glucose and for the conversion of beta- to alpha-glucose have been calculated from the concentration profiles. The calculated rate constants as well as equilibrium concentrations derived from them agree well with previousl y reported values.