Evaluating the Effect of Thermal Treatment on Phenolic Compounds in Functional Flours Using Vis-NIR-SWIR...

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Spectroscopy

Background:

• Growing consumer demand for alternative ingredients and nutritional limitations of wheat flour.
• Functional flours are rich in bioactive compounds, particularly phenolic compounds.
• Understanding the thermal stability of these compounds is crucial for food applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the thermal stability of phenolic compounds in various functional flours.
• To develop a non-destructive spectroscopic method for classifying functional flours.
• To assess the impact of baking temperature on phenolic content.

Main Methods:

• Visible, near, and shortwave-infrared (Vis-NIR-SWIR) spectroscopy (350-2500 nm).
• Machine learning algorithms, specifically Random Forest models, for classification.
• Spectral data analysis with and without the visible region to assess color influence.

Main Results:

• High classification accuracy (0.98-0.99) for flour type, baking temperature, and phenolic concentration using full spectral range.
• Legume and wheat flours retained higher total phenolic content (TPC) at mild temperatures.
• Grape seed flour (GSF) and olive stone flour (OSF) showed significant TPC thermal stability even at high temperatures.

Conclusions:

• Vis-NIR-SWIR spectroscopy integrated with ML provides a rapid, non-destructive method for functional flour classification and quality assessment.
• The approach is robust, with classification accuracy minimally impacted by excluding the visible spectral region.
• Findings support precision food formulation and quality control for functional flours.