抄録
The recent use of Eucheuma gelatinae of Okinawa has been much depressed, though the mucilagenous extracts had good evaluations in local textile industries and some other uses. This paper describes the physico-chemical properties of the mucilaginous extracts with special emphasis on analyses of gelling properties as well as on processing methods. Eight samples were collected along the coast of Iri-Omote-jima, Hatoma-jima and Ishigaki-jima. The yield of freeze-dried matter of mucilagenous substances which were extracted twice by cooking in water was 58% to the original dry seaweeds. The hot sol of 1% concentration solidified at about 27°C, which increased up to about 38°C for 2% sol. Melting point of gel at 1% concentra-tion level was 31.4°C on the average for 8 different samples. These get-sol properties aswell as instrumental textural properties of gel resembled the rheological properties of iota-type carrageenan. But, the infrared spectra, rather, suggested that the muculaginous polysac-charides were more similar to kappa-type carrageenan.
