The sol–gel transition temperature of skim milk concentrated by microfiltration as affected by pH and protein content

Abstract

This study aimed at determining sol–gel transition temperatures of microfiltered skim milk retentates for different protein levels (6, 8 and 10% (w/w)) and a wide pH range (native pH to 4.6) by means of small‐amplitude oscillatory shear rheology. For a pH of 5.4 to 5.0, the sol–gel transition temperatures decreased significantly with increasing protein content, which did not differ for pH 4.8 and 4.6. The sol–gel transition temperatures of retentates with 10% (w/w) protein at pH 5.4 and 4.6 were 58.4 °C and 10.9 °C, respectively.