Application of Various Drying Methods to Produce Enzymatically Hydrolyzed Porous Starch Granules

Porous starch powders were produced by hydrolyzing corn starch with a mixture of -amylase and glucoamylase followed by drying the hydrolyzed starch by oven, spray, and vacuum freeze-drying methods. The starch granule structure, adsorption capacity, crystalline/amorphous nature, and gelatinization behavior of both the native and porous starch samples were investigated. The porosity, adsorption capacity, and thermal stability were found to be highest in the freeze-dried porous starch while the crystallinity was highest in spray-dried porous starch. This study shows that relatively heat-stable porous starch can be produced by using enzymatic hydrolysis followed by freeze drying or spray drying. The porous starch, produced in this way, can be preferably used as an adsorbent in the food, pharmaceutical, chemical, cosmetic, and agricultural industries.