Low-Viscosity Starch via Acid-Heat and Extrusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current starch products, such as maltodextrins, face challenges in achieving low viscosity and cold water solubility while maintaining functional properties like texturizing and emulsifying abilities, and their production is costly and resource-intensive, with chemical modifications leading to environmental issues and labeling concerns.
Innovation Solution
A process involving acid-heat or heat-moisture treatment of native starch followed by extrusion in a twin screw extruder to produce a low-viscosity starch product with reduced reducing sugar content and 100% cold water solubility, avoiding chemical modifications and the limitations of conventional maltodextrin production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If chemical modification is used to maintain starch stability during food processing, then stability against low pH, heat treatment, shear forces and freeze-/thaw cycles is improved, but environmental issues and labeling concerns arise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces chemical modification methods with a physical extrusion process. The extruder uses mechanical shear forces, heat, and pressure to modify starch properties without chemical agents. This substitution eliminates environmental contamination and labeling issues while achieving the desired functional properties of starch products.
2Reliability
If conventional maltodextrin production is used, then cold water solubility is achieved, but production cost increases and resource consumption rises due to spray-drying process
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the energy-intensive spray-drying step from the conventional maltodextrin production process. The extrusion process achieves cold water solubility through mechanical and thermal treatment alone, removing the need for the costly and resource-consuming spray-drying operation while maintaining product functionality.
3Reliability
If acid-heat treatment is applied to starch, then cold water solubility is improved, but reducing sugar content increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies acid-heat treatment as a preliminary step before extrusion. The controlled acid-heat treatment initially increases cold water solubility while generating some reducing sugars, but the subsequent extrusion process further modifies the starch structure to enhance solubility while the overall process controls final reducing sugar content through parameter optimization.
4Reliability
If heat-moisture treatment is used to increase gelatinization temperature, then thickening performance in boiling applications is improved, but viscosity increases which is undesirable for low-viscosity product applications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses dynamic extrusion conditions with varying temperature, pressure, and shear rate along the extruder zones. This dynamic processing allows control over the final product viscosity independently of gelatinization temperature, enabling production of low-viscosity starch products with improved boiling stability through the synergistic effect of extrusion parameters rather than relying solely on heat-moisture treatment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The process yields starch products with superior functional properties to maltodextrins, offering cost savings and reduced environmental impact, with properties suitable for use in nutritional, pharmaceutical, and veterinary compositions, and as substitutes for maltodextrins.
Implementation Method 1
a1) an acid-heat treatment wherein the native starch is adjusted to a moisture content of 19 to 21 wt.-%, 0.5 to 3 wt.-% of a diluted aqueous acid solution are added, wherein the acid concentration is 4 to 10 wt.-%
Implementation Method 2
heating to a temperature within the range of 105 °C to 180 °C for a time period of 10 to 150 min
Implementation Method 3
a2) a heat-moisture treatment at a temperature of 105 °C to 120 °C for a time period of more than 10 hours at a moisture content of the native starch of 21 to 29 wt.-%
Implementation Method 4
in the second step, subsequent to the first step, the intermediate starch product is subjected to an extrusion process in an extruder
Implementation Method 5
an extrusion process in an extruder, preferably a twin screw extruder
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The present invention concerns a process for the production of a low-viscosity starch product comprising the following first step and subsequent second step, a low-viscosity starch product obtainable by the process and its uses. In the first step of the process, starch is subjected to a1) an acid-heat treatment wherein the native starch is adjusted to a moisture content of 19 to 21 wt.-%, 0.5 to 3 wt.-% of a diluted aqueous acid solution are added, based on the total weight of the aqueous acid solution, or a2) a heat-moisture treatment at a temperature of 105 °C to 120 °C for a time period of more than 10 hours at a moisture content of the native starch of 21 to 29 wt.-%, based on the total weight of the native starch, followed by adjusting the moisture content to 16 to 20 wt.-%, based on the total weight of the heat-moisture treated starch, in order to obtain an acid treated starch, drying the acid-treated starch to a moisture content of below 6 wt.-%, based on the total weight of the acid-treated starch, heating to a temperature within the range of 105 °C to 180 °C for a time period of 10 to 150 min, adjusting the moisture content to 12 to 20 wt.-%, based on the total weight of the acid-heat treated starch. In the second step, subsequent to the first step, the intermediate starch product is subjected to an extrusion process in order to obtain the low-viscosity starch product. A low-viscosity starch product obtainable by the process and its use are also provided.