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Morphological properties of “Regalona” Quinoa and its adsorption isotherm modeling
Propiedades morfológicas de la Quinoa “Regalona” y modelación de su isoterma de adsorción
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15446/rfnam.v79.124831Keywords:
Equilibrium moisture, Isosteric heat, Microstructure, Pseudocereal, Water activity (en)Humedad de equilibrio, Calor isostérico, Microestructura, Pseudocereal, Actividad de agua (es)
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“Regalona” quinoa, the only commercial variety cultivated in Chile, is a coastal ecotype developed from the genetic material, traditionally harvested by Mapuche women in the Araucania region. This study determined the moisture sorption isotherms of “Regalona” quinoa at 20, 30 and 40 °C using six mathematical models (GAB, BET, Smith, Halsey, Oswin, and Henderson), and estimated isosteric heat of sorption, water adsorption surface area and grain morphology. Equilibrium moisture content was determined using the static gravimetric method. Among the evaluated models, GAB provided the best overall fit, followed by Henderson and Oswin. The monolayer moisture content, estimated from the GAB model, ranged from 6.97 to 11.55 g H₂O per 100 g of solids, depending on temperature. The net isosteric heat of sorption was 6.26 kJ mol-1 at a moisture content of 5.0%, and the water adsorption surface area ranged from 247.28 to 409.60 m² g-1 depending on temperature. These findings indicate that the hygroscopic behavior of “Regalona” quinoa is influenced by its compositional and structural characteristics and provide a basis for estimating critical moisture contents and optimizing drying processes.
La quinua “Regalona”, la única variedad comercial cultivada en Chile, es un ecotipo costero desarrollado a partir de material genético recolectado tradicionalmente por mujeres mapuches en la región de la Araucanía. Este estudio determinó las isotermas de sorción de humedad de la quinua “Regalona” a 20, 30 y 40 °C utilizando seis modelos matemáticos (GAB, BET, Smith, Halsey, Oswin y Henderson), y estimó el calor isostérico de sorción, el área superficial de adsorción de agua y la morfología del grano. El contenido de humedad de equilibrio se determinó mediante el método gravimétrico estático. Entre los modelos evaluados, el GAB proporcionó el mejor ajuste general, seguido por los modelos de Henderson y Oswin. El contenido de humedad de la monocapa, estimado a partir del modelo GAB, osciló entre 6,97 y 11,55 g de H2O por cada 100 g de sólidos, dependiendo de la temperatura. El calor isostérico neto de sorción fue de 6,26 kJ mol-1 para un contenido de humedad del 5,0%, y el área superficial de adsorción de agua varió entre 247,28 y 409,60 m2 g-1, según la temperatura. Estos resultados indican que el comportamiento higroscópico de la quinua “Regalona” está influenciado por sus características composicionales y estructurales, y proporcionan una base para estimar los contenidos críticos de humedad y optimizar los procesos de secado.
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