Sodium hydroxide treatment grain

Chemical treatment with sodium hydroxide, in granular form or solution, has been used as an alternative to mechanical treatment (e.g. rolling) of barley and other cereal grains. The intention is to soften the husk but not to expose the endosperm to rapid fermentation in the rumen, which would create excessively acid conditions. Originally, in practice it proved difficult to achieve these objectives by sodium... 

Chemical treatment with sodium hydroxide, ammonia or urea can be used as an alternative to physical processing of grains for ruminants. 

In the transparency or alkali treatment method, whole grains are boiled in sodium or potassium hydroxide solution so the seed coat and the endosperm become translucent, revealing the insect stages present inside (Apt, 1950). Transparency can also be achieved by soaking pulses or maize in a solution containing crystallized phenols, lactic acid, glycerin, and water. In this simple method, only late larvae, pupae, and adults that are about to emerge are detected (Keppel and Harris, 1953). 

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