Polymer selection, corn starch

Of the myriad of modified starch systems tested, ranging from simple enzymically dextrinized starches to covalently attached amino acids and peptides onto dextrinized and/or oxidized (hypochlorite or periodate) corn starch bases, two polymers were selected as holding promise. The first system was a low dextrose equivalent (DE 5.7) enzyme-modified corn starch. The second starch-based polymer developed was a periodate-oxidized, amylase-dextrinized, covalently-attached phenylalanine glycoamine. 

Polymer Selection. The selection of corn starch as the starting material was made due to its low cost, ready availability, multitude of previous derivatization literature work and favorable chemical and physical properties (i.e., inert, readily deriva-tized homopolysaccharide capable of forming high solids content aqueous dispersions with relatively low viscosities). The corn starch used in this study was purchased in bulk from a local food cooperative. Table I gives the proximate analysis of a typical corn starch. 

Biobased polymers from renewable materials have received increased attention recently. Lactate is a building block for bio-based polymers. In the United States, production of lactic acid is greater than 50,000 metric tons/yr and projected to increase exponentially to replace petroleum-based polymers. Domestic lactate is currently manufactured from corn starch using the filamentous fungus Rhizopus oryzae and selected species of lactic acid bacteria. The produced lactic acid can then be polymerized into polylactic acid (PLA) which has many applications (Hatti-Kaul et al., 2007). However, so far, no facility is built to use biomass derived sugars for lactic acid production. More research needs to be done to develop microbes using biomass derived sugars for lactate production. 

Kerr and Severson have superimposed selective precipitation on aqueous extraction technique, by treating the soluble extract with butyl alcohol. This gives an A-fraction (designated by Kerr as crystalline amylose ) of exceptionally high iodine adsorption, but in yields amounting to only 5-6% of the starch. The products from corn and tapioca starches analyze 20.5% and 20.7% iodine adsorption respectively, as compared with a maximum value of 19.0% after four recrystallizations of the Pentasol-precipitated A-fraction from corn starch. This suggests that the A-fraction may be somewhat diversified in molecular size, and that aqueous extraction preferentially dissolves the shorter linear chains. It is not to be expected that all the molecules of a natural high polymer should be of uniform size. 

One of the primary variables which influences the recoveries of volatile flavor and aroma chemicals during spray drying is the wall material. Utilization of spray dried flavors in food systems presents further constraints on the wall material selection process. Of the food grade polymers available to the manufacturer of spray dried flavorings (i.e., gum acacia, lipophilic starches, maltodextrins, corn syrup solids), no single wall material exhibits the ideal traits deemed necessary for this economically important process. 

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