High-purity κ-carrageenan from Kappaphycus alvarezii algae for aerogel production by supercritical CO2 drying

Carrageenan, a polysaccharide mostly extracted from Kappaphycus alvarezii (KA), is valuable for cosmetic and food uses due to large quantities of κ-carrageenan. High-pressure sequential extractions can recover high-purity carrageenan from KA, adequate for aerogel production. The biopolymer properties such as size, shape, and sulphate groups affect the gel form and aerogel characteristics. In this work, aerogels were obtained by supercritical CO₂ drying, and cryogels by freeze-drying, using high-purity carrageenan, recovered by sequential high-pressure extractions (HP), and commercial carrageenan (CC). The results indicated that HP samples showed higher volumetric shrinkage (96 %), firmness (254 N), and envelope density (0.008 g.cm⁻³) compared to CC samples. Aerogels presented characteristics of pore volume, surface area, and density suggesting supercritical drying as feasible method to produce porous materials. Besides, the aerogels present valuable properties compared to cryogel, including high firmness, useful for applications in packages, scaffolds, or delivery systems, a tendency that must be increasingly explored.