Thermal and structural characteristics of date-pits as digested by Trichoderma reesei

S. M. K. Al-Saidi, Z. S. N. Al-Kharousi, M. S. Rahman, N. Sivakumar, H. A. R. Suleria, M. Ashokkumar, Malik Hussain, N. Al-Habsi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The objective of this study was to develop functional date-pits by mold digestion for the potential use in food products. Whole date-pits (WDP) and defatted date-pits (DDP) were digested by mold Trichoderma reesei at 20 °C. T. reesei consumed date-pits as nutrients for their growth, and DDP showed higher growth of molds as compared to the WDP. The mold digested WDP and DDP samples showed an increased water solubility and hygroscopicity as compared to the samples prepared by autoclaved. This indicated that the mold digestion transformed date-pits to hydrophilic characteristics. Thermal analysis indicated a structural change at −3.2 °C for the untreated WDP and it was followed by a glass transition shift (i.e. onset: 138 °C and a specific heat change: 295 J/kg oC), and an endothermic peak at 196 °C with enthalpy of 68 J/g for the solids melting-decomposition. Similar characteristics were also observed for treated samples with the two glass transitions. The total specific heat changes for WDP, autoclaved-WDP, and digested-WDP were observed as 295, 367, and 328 J/kg oC, respectively. The total specific heat changes for DDP, autoclaved-DDP, and digested-DDP were observed as 778, 1329, and 1877 J/kg oC, respectively. This indicated that mold digestion transformed more amorphous fraction in the DDP. The energy absorption intensities of the Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectra for the selected functional groups decreased by the mold digestion.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere28313
Number of pages16
JournalHeliyon
Volume10
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Mar 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors

Open Access - Access Right Statement

© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Notes

WIP in RD

Keywords

  • Glass transition
  • Amorphous
  • Hygroscopicity
  • Melting
  • Proton mobility
  • Crystallinity
  • Trichoderma reesei

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