IMPACT OF TEMPERATURE AND CELLULASE TREATMENTS ON RHEOLOGICAL BEHAVIOR OF POTATO-TUBER CELL-SUSPENSIONS

The rheological behavior of suspensions of potato tuber cells after ge latinization of starch and enzymatic-degradation of cellulose was stud ied. Elevating temperatures from 20 to 70-degrees-C resulted in a resp ective increase in storage modulus (G') and decrease in loss modulus ( G'') and complex dynamic viscosity (eta). The gelatinized starch behav es as an inflationary agent affecting cell elasticity and friction. De gradation of the cell wall by cellulase reduced G', G'', and eta at al l oscillation frequencies. Enzymatic degradation of the cell wall exhi bited apparent second-order behavior in relation to G' and eta. Enzyma tic removal of the cell wall resulted in the breakdown of the cell str ucture, dispersion of the intracellular starch, and liquefaction.