Research regarding the influence of drying technological parameters on the quality of wheat seeds

Abstract

The drying process for wheat seeds ensures optimal conditions for storage and stops microbiological processes. However, the drying technological parameters must be chosen so that the protein and gluten content of wheat seeds should not be affected. Research were made and it was showed that wheat protein was significantly affected by electrohydrodynamic drying (EHD) and upon both spray and freeze-drying, glutenins changed into smaller molecular weight polymeric proteins. The purpose of this study is to determine the optimal operating parameters of the drying process to minimize the loss of protein and gluten content. In order to improve the drying process, a drying unit was designed and built and wheat seeds with humidities between 15-21 % were subjected successively to be dried. The results of the experimental researches highlight a decrease of up to 18,49 % for the protein content and a decrease of up to 36,92 % for the gluten content.