Isolation and Characterization of Pectin in Sugar‐Beet Pulp

ABSTRACT Pectin was extracted from sugar‐beet pulp by various solvent fractionation procedures. An optimal HCI‐extraction method yielded 19.53% pectin from the raw material. The HCl‐isolated pectin contained 81.8% galacturonic acid. The sugar‐beet pulp pectin obtained from different extraction procedures had a high methoxy content ( 60% degree of methylation). The pectin also contained 10 to 17.5% neutral sugars which were mainly arabinose and galactose as analyzed by gas chromatography. The peak molecular weights (relative to dextrans) of the pectins as determined by gel permeation ranged from 35,500 to 44,700 daltons. The pectin possessed high water‐holding capacity and low viscosity.