Influence of Heat Moisture, Ultrasonication, and Gamma Irradiation on Pasting, Thermal, Morphological, and Physicochemical Properties of Indian Teff (Eragrostis tef) Starch

The present work is conducted to study the effect of heat-moisture treatment (HMT), ultrasonication (US), and gamma-irradiation (GI) on various properties of teff starch. Starch is subjected to HMT at 28% moisture level, US at a frequency of 20 kHz for 30 and 60 min, and GI at 5 and 10 kGy. US has an increased swelling power (8.22–9.39 g g⁻¹) and solubility (9.5–10.5%). Water binding and Oil binding capacity are improved in modified starches than native. The highest amylose content (24.94–25.24%) is observed in US than native (20.82%). Thermal characteristics show an increment in the modified teff starches with enthalpies varied from 2.30 to 3.81 J g⁻¹. Significant differences in starch gel textural properties are identified. Similar outcomes for native and modified findings are seen in Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectra. X-ray diffraction shows a similar X-ray pattern with crystallinity decreases for HMT (28.07%) and gamma irradiated starches (30.21%) and increases for ultrasonicated samples (32.23%). The morphological changes in teff starch are observed after physical modification. All in all, significant improvements have been reported in modified teff starch, which not only increases its industrial application but also improves the utilization of teff grain globally.