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Title: PREDICTING WHEAT QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND FUNCTIONALITY USING NEAR-INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY

Author
item Dowell, Floyd
item Maghirang, Elizabeth
item XIE, FENG - KANSAS STATE UNIV.
item Lookhart, George
item PIERCE, RICHARD - USDA, GIPSA, FGIS
item Seabourn, Bradford
item Bean, Scott
item Wilson, Jeff
item Chung, Okkyung

Submitted to: Cereal Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/26/2006
Publication Date: 9/1/2006
Citation: Dowell, F.E., Maghirang, E.B., Xie, F., Lookhart, G.L., Pierce, R., Seabourn, B.W., Bean, S., Wilson, J.D., Chung, O.K. 2006. Predicting wheat quality characteristics and functionality using near-infrared spectroscopy. Cereal Chemistry. Vol. (83)5:529-536.

Interpretive Summary: Rapid tests are needed by the wheat industry to measure grain quality to determine value, and to predict the bread quality that will be produced from that grain. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is commonly used to measure characteristics such as protein and moisture content, and may have potential for measuring other parameters. This rapid technology was examined from measuring 190 grain, milling, flour, dough, and breadmaking quality parameters of 100 hard red winter and 98 hard red spring wheat samples. Protein content, moisture content, and flour color were predicted with very high accuracies. Other parameters that showed some potential for rough screening using NIRS include test weight, dark hard and vitreous kernels, SDS sedimentation volume, gluten content, gliadin and glutenin content, water absorption, and loaf volume. However, many of these characteristics are highly correlated to protein content. When the influence of protein content was removed, the only factors that could be predicted by NIRS were moisture content, flour color, and dark hard and vitreous kernels. Similar results were seen for hard red winter and spring wheat, and when using spectra from grain or flour. This study emphasizes the advantages and limitations of NIR technology, and the need for developing other rapid quality prediction tests.

Technical Abstract: The accuracy of using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) for predicting 190 grain, milling, flour, dough, and breadmaking quality parameters of 100 hard red winter (HRW) and 98 hard red spring (HRS) wheat and flour samples was evaluated. NIRS shows the potential for predicting protein content, moisture content, and flour color b* values with accuracies suitable for process control (R2>0.97). Many other parameters were predicted with accuracies suitable for rough screening including test weight, single-kernel diameter and moisture content, SDS sedimentation volume, color a* values, total gluten content, mixograph, farinograph, and alveograph parameters, loaf volume, specific loaf volume, baking water absorption and mix time, gliadin and glutenin content, flour particle size, and dark hard and vitreous kernels. Similar results were seen for HRW and HRS wheat, and when predicting quality using spectra from grain or flour. However, many attributes were correlated to protein content. When the influence of protein content was removed from the analyses, the only factors that could be predicted by NIRS with R2 > 0.70 were moisture content, flour color, and dark hard and vitreous kernels. Thus, NIRS can be used to predict many grain quality and functionality traits, but mainly because of the high correlations of these traits to protein content.