Hanxue Hou

Effects of low poly(vinyl alcohol) content on properties of biodegradable blowing films based on two modified starches

Biodegradable films from hydroxypropyl distarch phosphate (HPDSP)/poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and cationic starch/PVA blends were obtained by extrusion blowing at ratios of 100:0, 95:5, 90:10, 85:15, and 80:20. The morphology, X-ray patterns, transparency, mechanical properties, thermal properties, and water vapor permeability (WVP) of the films were measured and compared. Scanning electron microscopic micrographs of the films showed continuous matrix texture as well as better compatibility between modified starches and PVA. X-Ray diffraction indicated the formation of ordered crystalline structures in the films during extrusion blowing. The addition of PVA to modified starches significantly increased their tensile strength (TS, 3.92 MPa) while decreasing their water vapor permeability (WVP, 3.23 × 10−10 g m−1 s−1 Pa−1). The starch/PVA composite films did not show phase separation.

Preparation and Properties of Oxidized Corn Starches by Semi-Dry Process

ABSTRACTOxidized corn starch prepared by a semi-dry process using hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant was studied. The optimum oxidation conditions of corn starch were mole ratio of H2O2 and anhydroglucose unit (0.219); mole ratio of NaOH and anhydroglucose unit (0.144); moisture content of the reaction mixture (27.2%); and reaction temperature (65°C). Compared with oxidized corn starch produced by reacting starch with sodium hypochlorite in alkaline slurry, oxidized corn starches produced by a semi-dry process apparently had different properties. Oxidation by a semi-dry process for corn starch resulted in significant changes in the degree of crystallinity of starch and the changes increased with the increase of carboxyl content of starch. Peak viscosities of oxidized starches produced by a semi-dry process were lower than those of commercial corn starch at similar carboxyl contents, while the final viscosities and setbacks of the former were much higher than the latter. There were apparent differences for te...

Effects of bran, shorts and feed flour by ultra-fine grinding on rheological characteristics of dough and bread qualities

Wheat bran, shorts and feed flour are rich in dietary fiber and micronutrients. The effects of ultra-fine ground bran, shorts and feed flour on rheological characteristics of dough and bread qualities were investigated. Water absorption and dough development time gradually increased while mixing tolerance index and dough stability time decreased with the addition of bran, shorts and feed flour. The extension resistance and energy values for all blended flours were significantly higher than those of the control flour. The gluten index decreased while the gluten yield increased with the increase of bran, shorts and feed flour. Peak viscosity of the blended flour significantly decreased compared to the control flour. Pasting temperature rose from 67.05°C to 71.55, 72.6 and 69.25°C for bran, shorts and feed flour blends, respectively. The total scores of sensory evaluation and hardness of crumb texture significantly decreased with the increase of bran, shorts and feed flour.

Relationships Between Some Structures and Functionalities of Starches from Wheat Cultivars Grown in East China

ABSTRACT Starches separated from 30 wheat cultivars grown in East China were studied for granule size, amylose content, degree of crystallinity, thermal, pasting, and gel textural properties. Average granule size and amylose content of wheat starches were 15.08–20.8 μm and 29.43–34.19%, respectively. The degree of crystallinity and enthalpy of gelatinization of samples was 29.54–42.12% and 5.2–9.95 J/g, respectively. The gelatinization temperature and pasting temperature were 59.45–62.2°C and 75.40–83.95°C, respectively. There was a wide range of gel hardness values (208.5–426 g). Various significant correlations between functionality and structural parameters were observed. Highly positive correlations were found between the gelatinization temperatures. Gelatinization peak temperature was significantly correlated to hardness of starch gels (r = –0.374, P < 0.05). Significant correlations were observed between amylose content and breakdown viscosity (r = –0.483, P < 0.01), hardness (r = 0.373, P < 0.05), ...

Ozone detoxification of patulin in aqueous solution and cytotoxic evaluation using human hepatic carcinoma cells

Patulin often contaminates fruits and fruit-base products, which seriously threats the health of consumers. In this study, ozone was used to degrade patulin in aqueous solution, and investigated the cytotoxicity of patulin after ozone detoxification on human hepatic carcinoma cells (HepG2) using MTT assay and apoptosis assay. Patulin was rapidly degraded from 24.59 mg/L to 9.85 mg/L within 180 s by 10.60 mg/L of ozone at a flow rate of 90 mL/min, and reduced by 59.94%. The half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of patulin on HepG2 cells was 9.32 μmol/L after 24 h of exposure, and it showed a dose dependent effect. After 90 s of ozone detoxification, the cell viability of HepG2 cells obviously increased from 42.31% to 93.96%, and the total apoptotic cells significantly reduced from 22.24% to 11.18% after 180 s of ozone treatment. The results clearly show the great potential of ozone in degrading patulin in liquid foods.

Effects of Organic Modification of Montmorillonite on the Properties of Hydroxypropyl Di-Starch Phosphate Films Prepared by Extrusion Blowing

The knowledge gained from starch-nanocomposite-film research has not been fully applied commercially because of the lack of appropriate industrial processing techniques for nanofillers and starch films. Three organically modified montmorillonites (OMMTs) were prepared using a semidry kneading method. The effects of the OMMTs on the structures and properties of starch nanocomposite films, prepared by extrusion blowing, were investigated. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis results revealed that the OMMTs with various quaternary ammonium salts possessed differing layer structures and d-space values. The results of the XRD and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) showed that the starch–OMMT interaction resulted in a structural change, namely the starch–OMMT films possessed a balanced exfoliated and intercalated nanostructure, while the starch–MMT film possessed an exfoliated nanostructure with non-intercalated montmorillonite (MMT). The results of the solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis suggested that the starch-OMMT nanocomposite possessed comparatively large quantities of single-helix structures and micro-ordered amorphous regions. The starch–OMMT films exhibited good tensile strength (TS) (maximum of 6.09 MPa) and water barrier properties (minimum of 3.48 × 10−10 g·m·m−2·s−1·Pa−1). This study indicates that the addition of OMMTs is a promising strategy to improve the properties of starch films.

Distribution of Phenolic Acids and Antioxidant Activities of Different Bran Fractions from Three Pigmented Wheat Varieties

Phenolic acid profiles and antioxidant activities of outer bran, coarse bran, and shorts from blue, black, and purple wheat were analyzed. Phenolic acids were mainly in the bound form in pigmented wheat bran fractions. Phenolic acid content decreased in the order of outer bran, coarse bran, and shorts for the three pigmented wheat varieties. HPLC analysis of phenolic extracts demonstrated that the bound form of phenolic acids contained more ferulic, isoferulic, and p-coumaric acids compared to their free counterparts. Among the three pigmented wheat varieties, the bran fractions from blue wheat contained higher bound phenolic acids than the other two pigmented wheat bran fractions, except for purple coarse bran. The blue wheat outer bran had the highest total bound phenolic acid of 3458.71 μg/g while the purple wheat shorts had the lowest of 1730.71 μg/g. The contribution of bound phenolic acids to the total phenolic content and antioxidant activity was significantly higher than that of free phenolic acids. Blue wheat bran fractions had the highest radical scavenging activity against DPPH∙ while those of purple wheat gained the highest ABTS∙+ scavenging activity. High correlations were observed between TPC and radical scavenging capacities for DPPH and ABTS ( , ).