2014 Volume 13 Issue 1 Pages 20-26
Konjac starches were isolated by immersing konjac “Tobiko” (fly powder) in an alkaline solution, washing with water, allowing the material to stand and centrifuging the material at different rotational speeds. The resulting material contained approximately 95%(w/w) starch by dry weight . The precise shape and particle size of the starches were determined by optical or electron microscopy; sizes ranged from 1-4µm. The polarization cross was observed for all starches, regardless of particle size, using polarized light microscopy. The pasting properties of the starches were measured using a Rapid Visco-Analyzer and were compared with those of four other kinds of starch. It was determined that the pasting temperature and temperature at peak viscosity of konjac starches were higher than those of sweet potato and potato starches, and that peak viscosity and set- back were high next to those of sweet potato and wheat starches, respectively.
