Effect of atmospheric cold plasma on the functional properties of whole wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain and wheat flour

Sonal Chaple,Chaitanya Sarangapani,John Jones,Edwin Carey,Lucie Causeret,Annaik Genson,Brendan Duffy,Paula Bourke

doi:10.1016/j.ifset.2020.102529

Abstract

Atmospheric cold plasma (ACP) has emerged as a novel processing technology, with demonstrated efficiencies in microbial inactivation. However, studies on the effects of ACP and potential to modify the functional properties of foods are sparse. The objective of this study is to determine the effect of ACP on physico-chemical and functional properties of wheat flour. In this study, both whole wheat grains and wheat flour were subjected to a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) contained plasma reactor for a range of treatment times (5–30 min) at 80 kV. Plasma treatment increased the flour hydration properties of wheat flour. Rapid visco-analyser results showed an increase in pasting and the final viscosities of wheat flour. The decrease in both endothermic enthalpies and crystallinity was attributed to the depolymerization of starch and plasma-induced changes. Overall DBD-ACP treatment can be tailored to develop a plasma process with potential to improve functionality of wheat flour.

Highlights

Wheat is a major dietary component worldwide
The oil holding capacity (OHC) of Plasma Treated Flour (PTF) increased with treatment time; Fig. 3
As shown in Fig. 3.a, the water holding capacity (WHC) of all PTF samples increased with treatment time

Summary

Introduction

Wheat is a major dietary component worldwide. Wheat is mostly converted into flour and is consumed in the form of bread, biscuits, pasta products and other flour-based products. Processed wheat and bakery products are widely consumed, and the baking industry is dependent on the properties of flour. Some disadvantages of chemical oxidising agents include the potential to incorporate toxi cological effects in the food chain, whilst enzymes are expensive and can modify structures. These modifications lead to the incorporation of label amendments, e.g. bleached flour or bromated flour. Various nonthermal technologies have been investigated to improve the quality of bread flour. High-pressure processing (HPP) improved the functionality of wheat flour; increases in dough hardness, adverse changes to the protein structures of dough were associated with pressure above 50 MPa (Barcenas, Altamirano-Fortoul, & Rosell, 2010). Gamma radiation increased amylose fractions, oxidation of starch and decreased the intrinsic vis cosity, which in-turn affected the final product quality (Abd Allah, Foda, & El Saadany, 1974)

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Conclusion