Soybean Urease Reduction via Vacuum Decompression and Steaming
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Solution Overview
Problem
Soybeans contain urease, an enzyme that can lead to ammonia accumulation in the body, particularly in individuals with liver disorders, and can also facilitate harmful bacterial colonization, necessitating a reduction in urease content for safe consumption.
Innovation Solution
A method involving decompression of soybeans followed by steaming at specific temperature and pressure conditions to uniformly reduce urease content, while enhancing flavor and sweetness, involves decompressing soybeans to 30 kPa or less and steaming them at 80 to 150°C for 1 to 60 minutes, with optional drying and pulverization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If soybeans are heated by steaming under atmospheric pressure, then the urease content is reduced, but the residual urease content varies remarkably between each soybean and the reduction is not satisfactory
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by modifying the pressure parameter from atmospheric pressure to reduced pressure (vacuum) conditions. This change in pressure parameter enables more uniform heat penetration and urease reduction across all soybeans, resolving the inconsistency problem where residual urease content varied remarkably between individual soybeans under atmospheric pressure steaming.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs preliminary action by performing decompression (vacuum treatment) before steaming. This preliminary step prepares the soybeans by removing air pockets and creating favorable conditions for subsequent uniform steam penetration, ensuring consistent urease reduction across all soybeans before the actual heating process begins.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional steaming is used, then the processing is simple, but the urease content cannot be uniformly reduced and safety is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the pressure parameter from atmospheric to reduced pressure conditions, which significantly improves urease reduction effectiveness. This parameter modification maintains relative process simplicity while achieving the safety goal of uniform and satisfactory urease content reduction across all soybeans.
Solution Approach 2:
The preliminary decompression step prepares the soybeans for more effective steaming by removing air pockets that would otherwise hinder steam penetration. This preliminary action enhances the overall effectiveness of the simple steaming process, ensuring uniform urease reduction without adding complex equipment or procedures.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If higher heating intensity is applied to reduce urease content, then the urease activity decreases, but the texture and flavor uniformity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the pressure parameter to reduced pressure conditions, which allows for more controlled and uniform heat distribution. This parameter modification enables effective urease reduction while maintaining uniform texture and flavor across all soybeans, avoiding the deterioration that would result from higher heating intensity under atmospheric pressure.
Solution Approach 2:
The preliminary decompression step creates uniform conditions throughout the soybean batch before heating begins. By removing air pockets and ensuring consistent starting conditions, this preliminary action allows subsequent heating to proceed uniformly, reducing urease activity while preserving texture and flavor uniformity without requiring excessive heating intensity.
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 method achieves a uniformly reduced urease content in soybeans, improving safety and taste, with reduced variability in texture and flavor, making them suitable for food and beverage applications.
Implementation Method 1
decompressing a soybean
Implementation Method 2
steaming the soybean obtained in step (A)
Implementation Method 3
steaming at specific temperature and pressure conditions
Data Source
AI summary
This invention relates to a processed soybean having a reduced urease content, the soybean being produced by decompressing and steaming, wherein the soybean is not ground soybean.