Effect of Temperature on the Hydration Kinetics of Chickpea (cicer Arietinum L.) and Yellow Soybean (glycine Max)

Abstract

Within the final goal of reducing the anti-nutritional factors in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) and yellow soybean (Glycine max) by means of their malting process, the main aim of this work was to study the kinetics of water hydration of such seeds at different temperatures in the range of 12-36 °C for as long as 24 h. The kinetics of such a process was reconstructed using the well-known Peleg model. The Peleg rate constant (k1) decreased with increasing temperature and was described by an Arrhenius type relationship. The estimated activation energy was equal to 36±6 or 60±3 kJ mol-1 for chickpea or yellow soybean, respectively. The Peleg capacity parameter (k2) was approximately constant and led to an equilibrium moisture ratio of 1.4 or 1.8 g of water per g dry matter for the above seeds. A 5-h soaking at T(24 °C rehydrated both seeds up to a moisture content of ~50% (w/w), this being preliminarily assessed as sufficient for activating the metabolic processes of germination.