In situ studies of monosaccharide gelation using the small-angle X-ray scattering time-resolved method.

The process of gelation of one of the monosaccharides, alpha-galactose-based gelator, with benzene as a solvent, has been studied. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) synchrotron time-resolved measurements were performed throughout the gelation process. The obtained SAXS measurements were elaborated using such methods as the fractal analysis, Fourier transform to get distance distribution functions, and simulation of a cluster model. We obtained the picture of the mesostructure development from the sol state to the gel state. Our results indicate that the fractal-type aggregates exist in the sol and the process of gelation is accompanied by the structural transition. This transition causes the aggregates to become smaller and denser, and their shapes differ from those of the sol. The complex method of SAXS data treatment we established seems to be a useful tool also for further studies of monosaccharide gelation.