Measuring and testing – Flour – dough – or bread
Patent
1989-07-03
1990-09-04
Shoap, Allan N.
Measuring and testing
Flour, dough, or bread
494 10, 530374, G01N 3310
Patent
active
049534017
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a method for determining the quality of gluten in wheat, in which method a gluten sample taken from wheat dough is placed on a sieve in a centrifuge and centrifuged against the sieve.
When determining the quality of wheat flour, it is normal to establish the amount of protein and gluten contained therein. This can be achieved with the aid of relatively simple methods which can be quickly carried out. This analysis alone, however, is not sufficient to assess the baking properties of the flour with any degree of surety, since two flours which have mutually the same protein or gluten content may have totally different baking properties, due to the fact that they have mutually different gluten properties. There is a great need to be able to establish the gluten quality in wheat in a sample and reliable manner, this need being found particularly among wheat growers, millers and bakers.
When determining the gluten content of wheat flour, it is normal practice to prepare a wheat dough from a given quantity of wheat flour and to remove the starch from the dough, by treating the dough in a jet of water. This procedure results in a residual product of water-insoluble, wet gluten which contains 80-85% protein. A measurement of the gluten content of the flour can be obtained by weighing the gluten making up the residual product. Since the gluten content and the protein content are mutually proportional, there is also obtained in this case a measurement of the protein content of the flour.
It can be ascertained manually that the properties of the gluten obtained in this way may vary from flour to flour.
For example, the gluten can be dry, elastic inelastic, short, stretchable, slimy, tacky, etc. Manual characterization of the properties of the gluten is not considered to give a sufficiently reliable and clear result. There is, however, no internationally accepted method for determining gluten quality analytically.
Many different types of apparatus have been constructed for measuring the rheological, i.e. elastic, plastic and viscous properties of the gluten. One type of apparatus is based on the method of measuring the stretchability of the gluten when subjected to a given force over a given period of time. Another type of apparatus is based on the method of first subjecting the gluten to a given force over a given period of time and then measuring restoration of the gluten to its original state. Another type of apparatus is based on the method of placing a gluten sample between a plate and a cone, subjecting the sample to torsional forces, and measuring the relaxation properties of the sample. None of these apparatus, however, has found general use, due to the fact that the methods supplied therewith are too complicated and the apparatus too expensive.
In certain countries, e.g. Austria, the swelling-index method (German: Quellzahl) is used officially to determine the gluten quality and baking properties of wheat flour. This method is based on degrading the gluten in lactic acid and recording the degradation effect. The method is both complicated and highly time consuming (3-4 hours are required in order to carry the method into effect).
The object of the present invention is to enable the quality of gluten in wheat to be determined analytically in a simple and positive manner.
This object is achieved in accordance with the invention by determining the amount of gluten which penetrates the sieve under the influence of the centrifugal force generated, and using this penetrative amount as a measurement of the gluten quality. More particularly, subsequent to centrifuging the sample there is determined the ratio between the amount of gluten which has not passed through the sieve and the total amount of gluten present.
A particular advantage is afforded in this regard when the extent to which the gluten sample passes through a special sieve is determined in combination with the centrifugation process normally carried out to determine the gluten content of flour, e.g. with the aid of an appa
REFERENCES:
patent: 3169395 (1965-02-01), Enoch et al.
patent: 3651768 (1972-03-01), Hyppola
patent: 4125528 (1978-11-01), Lao et al.
Shoap Allan N.
Wirthlin Alvin
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