Plant polysaccharide itself as hydrogen bond donor in a deep eutectic system-based mechanochemical extraction method

A deep eutectic system (DESys) is formed when a hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) is processed with polysaccharide (hydrogen bond donor, HBD) containing plant substance in water to dissolve, extract, and recover the polysaccharide directly, instead of using a traditional deep eutectic solvent (DES). The extraction efficiency is enhanced by the direct formation of the DESys, in a mechanochemical extraction (MCE) system. Key factors affecting the extraction efficiency were systematically studied and optimized. The effects of the DESys on the structure and physicochemical properties of polysaccharides were studied by several analytical techniques. The findings demonstrated that the direct DESys formation extraction efficiency was superior than that of traditional extraction methods while retaining physicochemical properties of polysaccharides. Moreover, the composition of polysaccharides extracted with this method is different from that obtained by conventional methods. The recovery and purification process of polysaccharides is simplified by eliminating the need for an additional HBD.