Functional characteristics of shrimp chitosan and its membranes as affected by the degree of deacetylation.

The functional properties of three shrimp chitosan preparations with different degrees of deacetylation (75%, 87% and 96% DD) but with a constant molecular weight (about 810 kDa) were investigated. Chitosan with 75% DD had a 1.5 times higher water absorption, probably due to its 20% lower level of crystallinity.