Water dispersion kinetics during starch gelatinization

The kinetics of water dispersion during the gelatinization of dilute suspensions of maize starch was studied by analyzing changes in electrical conductance data recorded continuously with time. Several analytical methods were compared for the preliminary study of the activation energy of gelatinization. The probable mechanism of the process was investigated by a number of homogeneous and heterogeneous reaction kinetic models. A modified composite methodology coupled with a reduced-plot method was employed to fit the kinetic data. Two simultaneous elementary reactions, expressed by an autocatalytic kinetic model and a 3D moving phase-boundary rate model, predicted the overall kinetic behavior with appreciable success.