Acetylation of starch with vinyl acetate in imidazolium ionic liquids and characterization of acetate distribution

0144-8617/$ see front matter Published by Elsevier doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2010.01.045 q Product names are necessary to report factually on USDA neither guarantees nor warrants the standard o the name by the USDA implies no approval of the prod that may also be suitable. * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 309 681 6354; fax E-mail address: [email protected] (R.L. Starch was acetylated with vinyl acetate in different 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium (BMIM) salts as solvent in effort to produce starches with different acetylation patterns. Overall degree of substitution was much higher for basic anions such as acetate and dicyanimide (dca) than for neutral anions such as chloride and nitrate. There was a strong preference for acetylation at the C2 position in BMIM dca while acetylation was similar for C2, C3 and C6 in BMIM OAc. Molecular weights were not changed significantly by the reaction conditions. These results suggest that ionic liquids can provide a convenient medium for the homogeneous modification of starches with some control over substitution patterns. Published by Elsevier Ltd.