Extraction and Characterization of Chitin and Chitosan from Shrimp Shell Wastes

Chitin is the most essential common polysaccharide after cellulose found in crustaceous shell or in cell walls of fungi. However, it is not widely used for industrial application up to now because it is insoluble in many solvents, relatively difficult to isolate from natural sources in pure from and to prepare in a reproducible way under good economic condition. That is why it is also difficult to characterize this polysaccharide. The aim of this study was to extract chitin and chitosan by using chemical extraction method. Several treatments with acid and alkali were taken into consideration to determine effective concentration for yielding optimum output. The waste shells of fish were used as raw material in the experiment and analysis by FTIR, XRD and SEM.