Method for improving storage stability of saccharide-containing solution

Abstract

Provided in one embodiment of the present invention is a method for improving the storage stability of a saccharide-containing solution, comprising a step of irradiating a saccharide-containing solution with light-emitting diode (LED) light. Even if a saccharide-containing solution, particularly, an allulose-containing solution, is stored at various temperatures, the method according to one embodiment of the present invention delays browning of the saccharide-containing solution without affecting changes in the pH and saccharide amount of the saccharide-containing solution. In addition, if a browned saccharide-containing solution is stored using the method according to one embodiment of the present invention, the browned saccharide-containing solution can be decolorized.

Description

Method for improving the storage stability of sugar-containing solutions

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, and more specifically, to a method for effectively improving the storage stability by delaying browning that occurs when a sugar-containing solution, such as an allulose-containing solution, is stored for a long period of time or by decolorizing an already browned sugar-containing solution.

[0002] D-allulose is an epimer of fructose at the 3rd carbon atom and is also called D-psicose. Allulose has 70% the sweetness of sucrose (Oshima, 2006) but only 0.3% the energy, making it a functional monosaccharide that can be used as a low-calorie sweetener in diet foods (Matsuo et al., 2002). In addition, allulose has the function of suppressing blood sugar levels by inhibiting the absorption of glucose, so it can be applied to foods for diabetic patients and foods for those receiving nutrition, and it can suppress the activity of enzymes involved in lipid synthesis in the liver, so it can suppress the accumulation of abdominal fat, so it can be used in various functional foods such as health foods (Matsuo et al., 2001; Iida et al., 2008; Hayashi et al., 2010; Hossain et al., 2011).

[0003] Due to the above characteristics, allulose is a good substitute for sugar. However, it is a rare sugar, a monosaccharide that is extremely rare in nature. Therefore, for application in the food industry, it is manufactured through biological methods, such as a method of converting fructose to allulose by directly reacting it with D-allulose 3-epimerase, and a method of converting fructose to allulose by reacting it with the cells of a strain that produces D-allulose 3-epimerase as an intracellular enzyme. The allulose-containing solution manufactured through biological methods goes through a separation and purification process to increase purity and remove impurities, and is then concentrated and generally provided in the form of a liquid syrup. When stored for a long time, sugar-containing solutions such as allulose syrup undergo Maillard reactions or caramelization reactions depending on storage conditions such as temperature and pH, and easily turn brown. Therefore, the development of a method to improve the storage stability of sugar-containing solutions such as allulose syrup is required.

[0004] As a technology related to decolorization of a sugar-containing solution, the Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0020877 discloses a purification method in which crude reducing sugar separated from molasses by the ion exclusion method is pretreated with a porous polymer resin such as Diaion HP20 or Amberlite XAD2 resin, and impurities such as pigments are removed using an ion exchange resin to decolorize and desalt the reducing sugar solution.

[0005] The present invention has been derived from a conventional technical background, and the purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution.

[0006] The inventors of the present invention have confirmed that when an allulose-containing solution is stored at various temperatures and irradiated with LED (light emitting diode) light, the browning of the allulose-containing solution is delayed or the browned allulose-containing solution is discolored, and thus completed the present invention.

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, one example of the present invention provides a method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, including a step of irradiating the sugar-containing solution with LED (light emitting diode) light.

[0008] The sugars constituting the above sugar-containing solution are not particularly limited, and may include, for example, one or more selected from glucose, fructose, allulose, galactose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, and oligosaccharides. In addition, the sugar solid concentration of the above sugar-containing solution is not particularly limited, and considering ease of storage and storage stability, it is preferably 5 to 80 Brix, preferably 5 to 75 Brix, and more preferably 40 to 70 Brix.

[0009] The above-mentioned sugar-containing solution is preferably an allulose-containing solution when considering the browning inhibition effect or the decolorization effect, etc. The sugar solid concentration of the allulose-containing solution is not particularly limited, and when considering the ease of storage and storage stability, etc., it is 5 to 80 Brix, preferably 5 to 75 Brix, and more preferably 40 to 70 Brix. In addition, the allulose content of the above-mentioned allulose-containing solution is not particularly limited, and may be 30 to 100 wt% based on the total sugar solid weight, preferably 60 to 99.9 wt%, and more preferably 90 to 99.5 wt%. In addition, the allulose-containing solution may contain, in addition to allulose, other sugars such as fructose, glucose, and allulose derivatives. The fructose content of the above allulose-containing solution is not particularly limited and may be 0.01 to 70 wt% based on the total weight of sugar solids, preferably 0.1 to 40 wt%, and more preferably 0.5 to 10 wt%. In addition, the content of other sugars including glucose, allulose derivatives, etc. of the above allulose-containing solution is not particularly limited and may be 0.01 to 10 wt% based on the total weight of sugar solids, preferably 0.1 to 6 wt%, and more preferably 0.2 to 4 wt%.

[0010] The above LED (light emitting diode) light is not particularly limited in type as long as it is light emitted from an LED light source, and can be selected from, for example, blue light, red light, green light, yellow light, and white light with a wide wavelength range. Considering the browning inhibition effect or the decolorization effect, it is preferable that the LED light is LED white light. The LED white light is generally light in which several colors of light corresponding to 380 to 780 nm are mixed, and for example, there are white light using a two-color light source, white light using a three-color light source, white light using a four-color light source, white light using a five-color light source, white light obtained by combining a fluorescent material with a blue or purple LED chip, etc. The color temperature of the LED light is not particularly limited, and can be selected from, for example, 2,700 to 6,500 K, and when considering the browning inhibition effect or the decolorization effect, it is preferable that it is 4,000 to 6,500 K, and more preferably 4,600 to 6,500 K. The power consumption of the above LED light is not significantly limited and can be selected from, for example, 5 to 200 W. Considering the browning inhibition effect or the discoloration effect, economy, etc., it is preferable to be 10 to 100 W, and more preferably 20 to 60 W.

[0011] The method of irradiating the above LED light to the sugar-containing solution is not particularly limited, and for example, the LED light can be continuously or intermittently irradiated to the sugar-containing solution, and when considering the browning inhibition effect or the decolorization effect, it is preferable to continuously irradiate the sugar-containing solution.

[0012] A method according to an embodiment of the present invention delays browning of a sugar-containing solution, particularly an allulose-containing solution, without affecting changes in pH or sugar content of the sugar-containing solution, even when the solution is stored at various temperatures. Furthermore, when a browned sugar-containing solution is stored using a method according to an embodiment of the present invention, the browned sugar-containing solution can be decolorized.

[0013] Figure 1 is an image of an allulose-containing solution prepared in a storage stability experiment of an allulose-containing solution.

[0014] Figure 2 is an image of an allulose-containing solution that changed when a predetermined storage period was warned in a storage stability test of the allulose-containing solution.

[0015] Figure 3 shows an image of a browned allulose-containing solution prepared in a storage stability experiment (left) and an image of a changed allulose-containing solution when stored for two weeks while irradiated with LED light (right).

[0016] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail through examples. However, the following examples are intended only to clearly illustrate the technical features of the present invention and do not limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0017] 1. Analysis method

[0018] (1) Color

[0019] A sample solution was prepared by diluting the sugar solid concentration of the allulose-containing solution to 30 Brix, and the color was evaluated by measuring the absorbance of the sample solution at a wavelength of 420 nm using a spectrophotometer.

[0020] (2) pH

[0021] A sample solution was prepared by diluting the sugar solid concentration of the allulose-containing solution to 10 wt%, and the pH was measured using a pH meter.

[0022] (3) Allulose content

[0023] The allulose content of allulose-containing solutions was measured using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The HPLC measurement conditions were as follows.

[0024] * Column: Aminex HPX 87C (7.8mm×300mm; Bio-Rad)

[0025] * Column temperature: 80℃

[0026] * Mobile phase: distilled water

[0027] * Flow rate: 0.6 ml / min

[0028] * Detector: RID

[0029] 2. Improvement of storage stability by LED light irradiation of allulose-containing solution

[0030] (1) Preparation of allulose-containing solution

[0031] Allulose epimerase was added to a fructose-containing solution and reacted to convert fructose into allulose, and through ion exchange purification and concentration processes, an allulose-containing solution having an allulose purity of approximately 96% (w / w) and a sugar solid concentration of approximately 70 Brix was prepared. The sugar composition of the prepared allulose-containing solution was 96.3 wt% allulose, 1.2 wt% fructose, and 2.5 wt% Unknown (presumed to be an allulose derivative, glucose, etc.) based on the total weight of sugar solids.

[0032] (2) Storage stability test of allulose-containing solution

[0033] Allulose-containing solutions were stored in transparent or light-shielded glass bottles, sealed, and continuously irradiated with LED light at preset temperatures (25°C, 40°C, and 60°C). The LED light used was white light with a power consumption of 28 W and a color temperature of 5,500–6,000 K. Since LED light does not pass through light-shielded glass bottles, the allulose-containing solutions stored in light-shielded glass bottles correspond to the experimental group that was not irradiated with LED light. Table 1 below summarizes the storage conditions of the allulose-containing solutions for each experimental group.

[0034] Storage Conditions Experimental Group Comparative Example 1 Example 1 Comparative Example 2 Example 2 Comparative Example 3 Example 3 Storage Temperature (℃) 25 25 40 40 60 60 LED Light Irradiation Presence or Absence × ○ × ○ × ○

[0035] (3) Results of storage stability test of allulose-containing solution

[0036] The color measurement results of the storage stability experiments of the allulose-containing solutions conducted in Comparative Examples 1 to 3 and Examples 1 to 3 are summarized in Table 2 below. In addition, the pH measurement results of the storage stability experiments of the allulose-containing solutions conducted in Comparative Examples 1 to 3 and Examples 1 to 3 are summarized in Table 3 below. In addition, the allulose content measurement results based on the total weight of sugar solids are summarized in Table 4 below as the storage stability experiments of the allulose-containing solutions conducted in Comparative Examples 1 to 3 and Examples 1 to 3.

[0037] Figure 1 is an image of an allulose-containing solution prepared in a storage stability experiment of an allulose-containing solution. Figure 2 is an image of an allulose-containing solution that changed when a predetermined storage period was warned in a storage stability experiment of an allulose-containing solution.

[0038] Analysis Item Storage Period (Week) Comparative Example 1 Example 1 Comparative Example 2 Example 2 Comparative Example 3 Example 3 colors00.0070.0070.0070.0070.0070.00710.0070.0030.0100.0060.0750 .05420.0090.0050.0140.0090.1630.13230.0080.0050.0180.010NDND40 .0100.0060.0210.015NDND50.0080.0050.0220.016NDND60.0100.0060.0270.020NDND70.0090.0060.0290.023NDND80.0090.0070.0330.026NDND

[0039] Analysis ItemStorage Period (Week)Comparative Example 1Example 1Comparative Example 2Example 2Comparative Example 3Example 3pH05.165.165.165.165.1615.105.094.804.814.264.2625.045.064.754.753.793.7835.035.054.074.71NDND45.025.034.694.69NDND55.025.014.654.66NDND64.954.954.564.57NDND74.904.914.524.50NDND84.774.784.474.45NDND

[0040] Analysis ItemStorage Period (Week)Comparative Example 1Example 1Comparative Example 2Example 2Comparative Example 3Example 3Allulose Content (Wt%)096.396.396.396.396.396.3196.296.394.694.590.290.1296.196.193.793.585.385.4396.195.992.892.7NDND496.196.092.192.2NDND596.095.991.791.6NDND695.895.891.491.4NDND795.795.691.091.0NDND895.595.590.490.5NDND

[0041] * ND: Not measured

[0042] As shown in Table 2 above, when LED light was irradiated under the same storage conditions at the same temperature, the browning of the allulose-containing solution was delayed and suppressed. As shown in Tables 3 and 4 above, the presence or absence of LED light irradiation under the same storage conditions at the same temperature was found to have little effect on the pH change and allulose content of the allulose-containing solution.

[0043] 3. Decolorization effect of a solution containing browned allulose by LED light irradiation

[0044] (1) Preparation of a solution containing browned allulose

[0045] Allulose epimerase was added to a fructose-containing solution and reacted to convert fructose into allulose, and an allulose-containing solution having an allulose purity of approximately 98% (w / w) and a sugar solid concentration of approximately 70 Brix was prepared through ion exchange purification and concentration processes. The prepared allulose-containing solution was stored at approximately 18°C ​​for 10 months to prepare a browned allulose-containing solution. The sugar composition of the browned allulose-containing solution was 97.1 wt% of allulose, 1 wt% of fructose, and 1.9 wt% of Unknown (presumed to be an allulose derivative, glucose, etc.) based on the total weight of sugar solids.

[0046] (2) Storage stability test of browned allulose-containing solution

[0047] Example 4.

[0048] The browned allulose-containing solution was placed in a transparent glass bottle, sealed, and stored at 25°C while continuously irradiating it with LED light. The LED light used was white light with a power consumption of 28 W and a color temperature of 5,500–6,000 K.

[0049] (3) Results of storage stability test of browned allulose-containing solution

[0050] Table 5 below summarizes the results of the storage stability experiment of the browned allulose-containing solution conducted in Example 4, including the color measurement results, pH measurement results, and allulose content measurement results based on the total weight of sugar solids. Figure 3 shows an image of the browned allulose-containing solution prepared in the storage stability experiment (left) and an image of the changed allulose-containing solution when stored for two weeks while irradiated with LED light (right).

[0051] Analysis Item Storage Period (Week) Example 4 Color 00.06710.02420.019 pH 04.3314.3324.32 Allulose Content (Wt%) 097.1197.0297.0

[0052] As shown in Table 5 above, when the browned allulose-containing solution was stored and irradiated with LED light, the allulose-containing solution was discolored. When the browned allulose-containing solution was stored, the presence or absence of LED light irradiation was found to have little effect on the pH change and allulose content of the browned allulose-containing solution.

[0053] While the present invention has been described through the above-described embodiments, the scope of protection of the present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments. It goes without saying that various modifications are possible within the scope and spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed as the best mode, but should be interpreted to include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, comprising the step of irradiating the sugar-containing solution with LED (light emitting diode) light.

2. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that in the first paragraph, the sugar constituting the sugar-containing solution includes at least one selected from glucose, fructose, allulose, galactose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, and oligosaccharides.

3. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that in paragraph 1, the sugar solid concentration of the sugar-containing solution is 5 to 75 Brix.

4. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that the sugar-containing solution in claim 1 is an allulose-containing solution.

5. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that in the fourth paragraph, the allulose content of the allulose-containing solution is 60 to 99.9 wt% based on the total weight of sugar solids.

6. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that in claim 1, the LED (light emitting diode) light is LED (light emitting diode) white light.

7. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that the color temperature of the LED (light emitting diode) light in paragraph 1 is 4,000 to 6,500 K.

8. A method for improving the storage stability of a sugar-containing solution, characterized in that in paragraph 1, the LED (light emitting diode) light is continuously or intermittently irradiated to the sugar-containing solution.

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