A branched structure provides kraft lignins a denser morphology and a high molar mass for a given hydrodynamic radius

Abstract

Size exclusion chromatography with multi-angle laser light-scattering detectors was applied for acetylated softwood and hardwood kraft lignins (Ac-SKL and Ac-HKL) and 8-O-4′ type of linear polymeric lignin model (Ac-M-8O4′) to compare their swelling behaviors. The plot of molar mass (MM) vs. retention time for Ac-M-8O4′ was similar to that of polystyrene, which revealed that Ac-M-8O4′ exhibited swelling behavior that was similar to that of polystyrene. However, the MM values of both Ac-KLs were larger than those of polystyrene standards at any retention time. This difference indicated that both Ac-KLs had a more compact structure than those of polystyrene and Ac-M-8O4′. One hypothesis is that the larger MM of both Ac-KLs stems from their branched structures. To verify this hypothesis, the frequency of 5-5′ interunit linkage in lignin samples was determined by 1H NMR after nitrobenzene oxidation. A linear relationship between MM and 5-5′ abundance was observed in the high MM region.