Whole Grain Wheat Flour Production Using an Ultracentrifugal Mill

Abstract

Interest has been growing in whole grain products. However, information regarding the influence of the ultracentrifugal mill on whole grain flour quality has been limited. An experiment was conducted to produce whole wheat flour with hard red spring (HRS) wheat using an ultracentrifugal mill. This study determined the effect of centrifugal mill parameters as well as grain moisture (10–16%) on producing whole wheat flour and its final products. Mill parameters studied were rotor speed (6,000–15,000 rpm) and feed rate (12.5–44.5 g/min). Results showed that fine particle size (<150 µm) was favored by low seed moisture content (10–12%) and high rotor speed (12,000–15,000 rpm). Flour moisture content was positively related to seed moisture content. Wheat grain with low seed moisture content (10–12%) milled with high rotor speeds (12,000–15,000 rpm) produced desirable whole grain wheat flour quality, with 70–90% of fine particle size portion and low damaged starch (less than 11%). This whole wheat flour produced uniform and machinable dough that had low stickiness and formed bread with high loaf volume.