Physical Properties of Buckwheat Starches from Various Origins

Starch of four buckwheat cultivars introduced from Poland, France, and Russia and one of German origin were comparatively studied by using enzymatic assay, Brabender Viscoamylography (BV), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and X-ray Diffractometry (XRD). Amylose content of the starches measured with enzymatic analysis ranged from 21.3 to 26.4 %. The viscosities of buckwheat starches derived from BV were much higher than those of cereal starches. The gelatinization temperatures determined by DSC were lower than those obtained from BV. SEM observation revealed starch granules with oval, spherical, and polygonal shapes. XRD suggested typical A type pattern of X-ray diffraction for all starches in question and crystallinity varied from 38.3 to 51.3 %.