Effect of roasting conditions on the formation and kinetics of furan in various nuts

In this study, the effect of roasting on the formation of furan in nuts was investigated. Nut samples were roasted at 150-200 °C for 5-25 min. As the roasting temperature and roasting time increased, the levels of furan in the nuts increased up to 348 ng/g. The concentration of furan was 2.76-224, 0.71-69.0, 1.46-348, 2.68-87.0, and 3.70-94.4 ng/g in almonds, peanuts, cashew nuts, hazelnuts, and sacha inchi, respectively. In kinetics analysis, the chemical reaction responsible for the production of furan in nuts followed the zero-order kinetic model, with reaction constants of 3.26 × 10^-9 to 16.5 × 10^-9mol/L.h at 200 °C. The apparent activation energy (Ea) was 125.0, 93.6, 86.5, 62.0, and 70.1 kJ/mol for almonds, peanuts, cashew nuts, hazelnuts, and sacha inchi, respectively. These results can be used to predict or to calculate furan formation in roasted nuts.