Mechanical relaxation processes due to sugars in cane (Arundo donax L.)

The storage modulus and the mechanical loss tangent of untreated, extracted, and sugar- impregnated canes (Arundo donax L.) were measured over a temperature range of –150° to 0°C at low frequencies. Two relaxation processes, labeled and , were detected in the ranges –60° to 0°C and –120° to –100°C, respectively. The and processes shifted to lower temperatures with increasing moisture content. The process was detected only in the canes containing sugar. The magnitude of its loss peak increased with an increase in sugar content. It was speculated that the process was due to some interactive molecular motions of the adsorbed water and sugar. The process, detected in all of the canes, was attributed to the motion of the adsorbed water in the amorphous cell wall substances.