Structure and dynamics in concentrated, amorphous carbohydrate-water systems by molecular dynamics simulation

We report results from molecular simulations of binary aqueous solutions of the carbohydrate stereoisomers, beta-D-glucose, beta-D-mannose, and D-fructose over a concentration range from zero to 80 wt % carbohydrate at 300 and 270 K. It is found that increasing carbohydrate concentration has a number of striking effects on the microscopic structure and dynamics of these solutions, including (1) a percolation threshold for connected water clusters at ca. 60 wt % carbohydrate, (2) a maximum in the hydrogen bond network strength and degree of ordering, as a function of carbohydrate concentration, at ca. 29 wt %, and (3) activated or "hopping" dynamics in the translational diffusion of water due to the influence of (1) and (2). There are appreciable differences in the magnitudes of these effects as a function of sugar type for the three stereoisomers studied. The relevance of these results is discussed in the context of the efficacy of sugars in biopreservation and lyophilization applications.