OTIMIZAÇÃO DE EXTRAÇÃO DE INULINA DE RAÍZES DE CHICÓRIA

Chicory root is the most important tuberous root for industrial production of inulin, which has high fructose content. Inulin is a stored carbohydrate, which can be found in more than 30,000 vegetable products. It is a fructooligosaccharide that is not digestible but it is selectively utilized by bifid bacteria in the large intestine, making inulin-type fructans the prebiotic prototype. Recently, inulin was identified as an ingredient that substitutes fat or sugar. In this work, inulin samples were extracted from chicory roots by a hot water diffusion process. The methodology consisted of the election of two levels of bath temperature, to the water: root ratio (water mass/root dry mass) and their combinations in a experimental design to execute the experiment. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) was done through the statistical 5.0 software. A second order polynomial model, with the response surface and contour plot was generated and it allowed the choice of temperature and water: root ratio that gives the highest inulin concentration.