Properties of dietary fiber from citrus obtained through alkaline hydrogen peroxide treatment and homogenization treatment

In this research, citrus dietary fiber (CF) was modified by two methods, homogenization or alkaline hydrogen peroxide (chemical) treatment, to improve its physicochemical properties. The homogenization and chemical treatment highly increased the CF's water swelling capacity by 433% and 276%, respectively. The water holding capacity of CF significantly increased by 253% after homogenization and 197% after chemical treatment. Both treatments increased CF's total dietary fiber content and thermal stability. Moreover, the chemically treated CF thermal stability was higher than the homogenized one. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) results showed the modified CFs exhibited porous structure. XRD and NMR results showed that the CF's crystalline region could be disrupted by both treatments. Overall results suggest that the two treatments could effectively improve CF physicochemical properties. The modified fibers might be potentially used as functional food ingredients.