30/06/2017: Quick flour and gluten quality checks by rheological fingerprints

The Brabender GlutoPeak measures the aggregation behaviour of gluten in a flour sample, for the purposes of describing its quality properties

 Why is this important?
 - Gluten is responsible for the elasticity and extensibility characteristics of dough 
- Stretching and elastic properties of gluten give information about flour quality and the suitability for a given purpose 
- Recognition of drying and heat damage on flour and dry gluten 

How does it work?
• A mixture of flour and water is created.
• The equipment separates the gluten complex, before aggregating it to a characteristic network, which is then broken down by a rotating mechanical measuring paddle that measures the energy inputs.
• A torque curve is recorded. The formation of the gluten network results in a strong increase of the curve. Further mixing destroys the network resulting in a decrease of the curve.
• The resulting torque curve has a typical shape. It is the ‘fingerprint’ of the individual flour.
 

Brabender GlutoPeak
Image credit: Brabender

What is the result?
The time taken to reach the maximum point on the curve, the peak, and its height and subsequent decline all provide essential information on flour and gluten quality and its rheological properties.

This information is available in short time at all in a way that can be easily read:
• Strong gluten has short rise times with high peaks,
• Weak gluten can be recognised by its delayed, flat curve peaks,
• Very soft gluten demonstrates very flat curves with very late and low peaks, right up to ‘zero peaks’, as is typical for wheat used in waffles.

New method: Rapid Flour Check
Compared to the existing evaluation, the new Rapid Flour Check method provides new options. With just 9g of flour and 9g of distilled water, close correlations for the protein content, wet gluten, water absorption and W value are available besides the standard evaluation points.

What are the benefits of the instrument?
• Fast test execution (1-10min)
• Small sample size: ~3-10g
• Easy handling
• Detection of inappropriate material makes further tests redundant
• No production losses due to use of inappropriate material
• Assurance of good flour and end product quality

Who can benefit from this instrument?
• Breeders can quickly screen grain qualities with small sample sizes
• Grain traders and millers can efficiently organise incoming goods control and storage in silos and can control process adjustments in the mill
• Bakers can quickly check incoming goods and specifications of those

Read more, HERE.

 

The Global Miller
This blog is maintained by The Global Miller staff and is supported by the magazine Milling and Grain
which is published by Perendale Publishers Limited.

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