The degradation of high molecular weights flocculants

Since the work by the Sugar Research Institute in the early 1970s (Crees et al., 1973), there has been a steady improvement in the quality of the polyacrylamide flocculants available to the Australian sugar industry. The most significant feature in recent years has been the increase in molecular weights of the polymers available, which has resulted in substantial improvements in performance. However, as the molecular weight increases so too does the ease with which these very large molecules can be broken. If the industry is to continue to realize the full benefits of these and other improvements in polymerization technology, the factors which can cause degradation and loss of performance must be understood. This paper therefore examines the effects on the stability and effectiveness of acryalmide polymers of several factors which have been found to cause problems in normal factory operations.