Evaluation of visco-elastic properties of conditioned wheat kernels and their doughs using a compression test under small strain

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The aim of this research was to evaluate the visco-elastic properties of conditioned wheat kernels and their doughs by applying the compression test under a small strain. Conditioned wheat kernels and their doughs, from soft and hard wheat classes were evaluated for total work (Wt), elastic work (We) and plastic work (Wp). RESULTS: Soft wheat kernels showed lower We than Wp, while the hard wheat kernels had a We that was higher than Wp. Regarding dough visco-elasticity, cultivars from soft and hard wheat showed higher Wp than We. The degree of elasticity (DE%) of the conditioned wheat kernel related to its dough decreased ∼46% in both wheat classes. The Wt, We and Wp from the soft wheat kernel and dough correlated with physico-chemical and farinographic flour tests. The Wt, Wp and the maximum compression force (Fmax) of the dough from hard wheat class presented highly significant negative correlations with wet gluten. CONCLUSION: The visco-elasticity parameters from compression test presented significant differences among conditioned wheat classes and their doughs. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.