Method for producing D-allulose granules

Abstract

To provide a method for producing D-allulose granules with superior fluidity, and a production method particularly suitable for apparatus capable of large-capacity processing.SOLUTION: Raw material powder including 50 mass% or more of D- allulose is fluidized using a gas with an air supply temperature of 20°C-70°C. In the fluidized state, the raw material powder is granulated using a binder liquid including water-soluble polysaccharides.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for producing D-allulose granules.

Background Art

[0002] D-allulose is an epimer of D-fructose and is a "rare sugar" having a sweetness of about 60 to 70% of sugar. While being used as a sweetener, D-allulose is known to have various physiological functions, for example, physiological functions such as an action of suppressing weight gain, an action of reducing body fat accumulation, an action of suppressing an increase in blood glucose level, and an action of suppressing the activity of liver fat synthesis-related enzymes, and is one of the food materials attracting attention.

[0003] In recent years, D-allulose has become relatively easy to obtain by the development of mass production technology. For example, powdered D-allulose ("Astraea" manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) is available.

[0004] However, powdered D-allulose has problems such as poor fluidity and moldability. To solve this problem, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for obtaining D-allulose granules suitable for tableting, that is, a method of granulating by fluidizing 300 g of D-allulose powder with air at 60°C and spraying an aqueous solution containing about 16.7% by mass of D-allulose.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] In an attempt to solve the problem of the fluidity of D-allulose powder, D-allulose granules were produced using the granulation method specifically disclosed in Patent Document 1. However, the fluidity of these granules was still insufficient, and in particular, it was not possible to obtain D-allulose granules with excellent fluidity using a granulation apparatus with a large batch capacity.

[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing D-allulose granules with excellent fluidity, and in particular, to provide a method for producing D-allulose granules that is suitable for actual production using large-capacity equipment. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The inventors of the present invention conducted various studies to solve the above problems and found that the above problems could be solved by using a solution containing water-soluble polysaccharides as a binder and granulating D-allulose while keeping the temperature of the air supplied to the fluidized bed (hereinafter referred to as "supply air temperature") at 20°C to 70°C, thereby completing the present invention.

[0009] In other words, the present invention was completed based on the above findings and consists of the following [1] to [8]. [1] A method for producing D-allulose granules, comprising the step of granulating a raw material powder containing 50% by mass or more of D-allulose with gas supplied at an air temperature of 20°C to 70°C, and then spraying it with a binder liquid containing a water-soluble polysaccharide to produce granules. [2] A method for producing D-allulose granules, comprising the step of granulating a raw material powder containing 85% by mass or more of D-allulose with gas supplied at an air temperature of 20°C to 70°C, and then spraying it with a binder liquid containing a water-soluble polysaccharide to produce granules. [3] A method for producing D-allulose granules according to [1] or [2] above, wherein the water-soluble polysaccharide is one or more selected from the group consisting of starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, and indigestible dextrins. [4] A method for producing D-allulose granules as described in [1] or [2] above, wherein the supply air temperature is 20°C to 40°C. [5] A method for producing D-allulose granules according to [1] or [2] above, comprising the step of spraying 10 to 40 parts by mass of a binder solution containing 5 to 30% (w / w) of water-soluble polysaccharides onto 100 parts by mass of raw material powder containing D-allulose to granulate it. [6] D-allulose granules containing 50% by mass or more of D-allulose and having a degree of compressibility of 18.5% or less. [7] The D-allulose granules described in [6] above, further comprising a water-soluble polysaccharide. [8] The D-allulose granules described in [7] above, wherein the water-soluble polysaccharide is one or more selected from the group consisting of starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, and indigestible dextrins. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] This method allows for the mass production of D-allulose granules with excellent fluidity. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] In this invention, "raw material powder" refers to powdered raw materials supplied to the granulation process. The raw material powder of this invention contains 50% by mass or more of D-allulose, preferably 70% by mass or more, more preferably 85% by mass or more, and even more preferably 95% by mass or more. For example, "Astraea" (a crystalline product containing 95% or more D-allulose manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.) can be used as the D-allulose.

[0012] The raw material powder may contain substances other than D-allulose, and components that may be included in the raw material powder of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as "other raw material components") include, for example, monosaccharides other than D-allulose, disaccharides, oligosaccharides, starch, starch hydrolysates, modified starch, modified starch hydrolysates, indigestible dextrin (including reduced products), polydextrose, inulin, and the like.

[0013] A binder liquid is a liquid used by spraying to bind the raw material powders together and form granules. The binder liquid of the present invention contains water-soluble polysaccharides as an essential component. As mentioned above, D-allulose granules using monosaccharides such as allulose as a binder have insufficient fluidity, and the fluidity is improved when water-soluble polysaccharides are used as a binder. Water-soluble polysaccharides are polysaccharides that dissolve in cold water, and examples include starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, indigestible dextrin (including reduced products), cold water-soluble starch (such as pregelatinized starch), polydextrose, inulin, cellulose, and thickening polysaccharides. The water-soluble polysaccharides used in the present invention are preferably starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, and indigestible dextrin, and more preferably modified starch hydrolysates and indigestible dextrin.

[0014] The content of water-soluble polysaccharides in the binder solution is 5 to 30% by mass, preferably 5 to 20% by mass. If it is below 5% by mass or above 30% by mass, granule formation will be difficult, which is undesirable. The amount of binder solution used is, for example, 10 to 40 parts by mass, preferably 20 to 40 parts by mass, per 100 parts by mass of raw material powder.

[0015] The aforementioned binder liquid is sprayed onto the raw material powder flowing in the air, causing the powder particles to bind together and become granules via the binder liquid. The most suitable equipment for fluidizing the raw material powder is a fluidized bed granulator. A fluidized bed granulator is equipped with a gas supply port (air, nitrogen, etc.) for fluidizing the raw material powder. The temperature at the air supply port (supply air temperature) must be set lower than the normal supply air temperature (70°C to 100°C). By setting it to such a low temperature, it is possible to produce D-allulose granules with excellent fluidity. If the supply air temperature is below 20°C, moisture tends to remain on the surface of the powder particles, making the granules prone to blocking. If it is above 70°C, the D-allulose becomes rubbery and tends to harden. Therefore, it is essential to set the temperature between 20°C and 70°C, and it is preferable to set it between 20°C and 55°C, or between 20°C and 40°C.

[0016] The D-allulose granules obtained in the above process need to have the moisture from the attached binder liquid removed by drying. There are no limitations on the drying method, but for example, drying can be done by stopping the supply of the binder liquid after the granulation process and continuing to supply gas for a certain period of time. The moisture content of the D-allulose granules of the present invention is preferably 3% or less, more preferably 1% or less.

[0017] The D-allulose granules obtained by the method described above have a compressibility of 18.5% or less, preferably 17.5% or less, and more preferably 16.0% or less. The bulk density is preferably 0.65 g / cc or less. The D-allulose content in the granules is 70% by mass or more, preferably 80% by mass or more, and more preferably 90% by mass or more. The average particle size is 240 μm or more, and preferably 300 μm or more.

[0018] The compressibility (fluidity), average particle size, solubility, and moisture content of D-allulose granules are measured by the following method.

[0019] "Compressibility (fluidity)" The fluidity of granular materials is evaluated by the compressibility value. Compressibility is the value of ("tight bulk density" - "loose bulk density") / "tight bulk density," and is one of the indicators for evaluating fluidity. Here, "loose bulk density" is the bulk density measured when the granular material is gently filled into a container, and "tight bulk density" is the bulk density measured after the granular material is gently filled into a container and then forced to flow by applying a certain amount of vibration. The better the fluidity of the granular material, the smaller the change in bulk density (compressibility) with and without vibration. In other words, the smaller the compressibility value, the better the fluidity of the granular material.

[0020] "Particle size distribution, average particle diameter" The particle size distribution and average particle diameter of the particles are measured by the sieving method. Specifically, sieves with mesh openings of 90 μm, 125 μm, 180 μm, 250 μm, 355 μm, and 500 μm are stacked on a tray in order from the sieve with the smallest mesh opening. The particles are put on top of the 500-μm sieve at the top and shaken to fractionate them. After that, the mass of the substance remaining on each sieve and the tray is measured to obtain the particle size distribution, and the average particle diameter is calculated using the following formula.

Number

[0021]

Number

[0022] Here, the a value is the size (μm) of the mesh opening of the first sieve when the cumulative mass frequency becomes 50% or more when the mass frequencies of the tray and each sieve are integrated. The b value is the size (μm) of the mesh opening of the sieve one step smaller than the a value. The c value is the integrated value (%) of the mass frequency from the tray to the sieve of a μm, and the d value is the integrated value (%) of the mass frequency from the tray to the sieve of b μm.

[0023] 「Solubility」 The solubility of the granules is determined by putting 5 g of the granules into 1 L of water (20 ± 2°C) and checking for the presence or absence of undissolved residue and the size of the undissolved sample after 1 minute has elapsed.

[0024] 「Moisture」 The moisture of the granules is measured using an infrared moisture meter (for example, the infrared moisture meter of Kett Science Laboratory).

[0025] The D-allulose granules of the present invention can be used in foods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, industrial chemicals, etc., and are particularly advantageously used in the form of powders, granules, and solids. When used in foods, particularly in powdered or granular foods, for example, it can be advantageously used in sweetening compositions used as sweeteners such as tabletop sweeteners, powdered granular beverages, powdered granular seasonings, granular soups, and premix powders such as tempura powder and cake mix powder. Also, when used in solid foods, it can be advantageously used in food forms in which the shape of the granules of the present invention is relatively retained during the manufacturing process, such as tablet confectionery, chocolate, and gum.

[0026] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited by these examples.

Examples

[0027] <Manufacture of D-allulose granules> Using the raw material powder (2 kg) and binder solution (0.6 kg) described in Table 1, D-allulose granules were produced by a fluidized bed granulator (device name FLO-5A, capacity 20 L, manufactured by Freund Industry Co., Ltd.). The air supply temperature for fluidizing the raw material powder was 20°C to 100°C (described in Table 1), and the air volume was 1.0 to 3.0 m3 / min. The D-allulose powder used was "Astraea" (crystalline D-allulose with a purity of 95% or more, manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.), the indigestible dextrin was "Fibersol 2" (manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.), and the hydrolyzed starch product was "Food Tech" (manufactured by Matsutani Chemical Industry Co., Ltd.).

[0028]

Table 1

[0029] <Evaluation of D-allulose granules> The compressibility, particle size distribution, average particle diameter, solubility, and moisture content of the obtained D-allulose granules were measured by the methods described in Table 2. The results are shown in Table 3.

[0030]

Table 2

[0031] [Table 3]

[0032] The compressibility (an indicator of fluidity) of D-allulose granules prepared with the supply air temperature set to 70°C was 21.3% (Test 1) when a liquid containing D-allulose was used as the binder, and 18.0% (Test 2) when a liquid containing indigestible dextrin was used. This indicates that using a liquid containing indigestible dextrin as the binder yields D-allulose granules with good fluidity. Furthermore, when comparing D-allulose granules prepared with the air supply temperature set to 70°C (Test 2) or 20°C (Test 3), the lower the air supply temperature, the lower the degree of compressibility and the better the fluidity. When the air supply temperature was set to 100°C (Test 4), the powder agglomerated during the granulation process and could not be recovered as granules. In addition, even when a liquid containing D-allulose was used as a binder and granulation was performed at an air supply temperature of 20°C, the granules agglomerated immediately after production, and it was not possible to obtain D-allulose granules with desirable fluidity.

[0033] Furthermore, the D-allulose granules prepared using a binder solution containing modified starch hydrolysate (Test 5) had a compressibility of 15.5%, which was lower than that of the granules in Test 1, indicating good fluidity. The D-allulose granules prepared using indigestible dextrin not only as a binder solution but also incorporated as part of the raw material powder (Test 6) also had a compressibility of 18.8%, which was lower than that of the granules in Test 1, indicating good fluidity.

Claims

1. A method for producing D-allulose granules, comprising the step of granulating a raw material powder containing 85% by mass or more of D-allulose with gas supplied at an air temperature of 20°C to 70°C, and then spraying it with a binder liquid containing a water-soluble polysaccharide to produce granules.

2. A method for producing D-allulose granules according to claim 1, wherein the water-soluble polysaccharide is one or more selected from the group consisting of starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, and indigestible dextrins.

3. A method for producing D-allulose granules according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the supply air temperature is 20°C to 40°C.

4. A method for producing D-allulose granules according to claim 1 or 2, comprising the step of spraying 10 to 40 parts by mass of a binder solution containing 5 to 30% (w / w) of water-soluble polysaccharides onto 100 parts by mass of a raw material powder containing D-allulose to granulate it.

5. D-allulose granules containing 80% or more by mass of D-allulose and water-soluble polysaccharides, with a compressibility of 18.5% or less.

6. The D-allulose granules according to claim 5, wherein the water-soluble polysaccharide is one or more selected from the group consisting of starch hydrolysates, modified starch hydrolysates, and indigestible dextrins.

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