JOMALOFAGRIOILTIIALffiSEARCH 



Vol,. XIII Washington, D. C, May 20, 1918 No. 8 



HYDRATION CAPACITY OF GLUTEN FROM "STRONG" 

 AND "WEAK" FlvOURS^ 



By Ross Aiken GorTnER, Chief of the Division of Agricultural Biochemistry, Minne- 

 sota Agricultural Experiment Station, and EvERETT H. DoHERTY, Instructor in 

 Agricultural Chemistry, Oregon Agricultural College^ 



INTRODUCTION 



It is a well-known economic fact that there is a great variation in the 

 baking quality of flours prepared from different wheats {Triticum spp.). 

 The hard spring wheats, especially those of the northern portion of the 

 Great Plains area, produce a flour which has superior baking quahties, 

 while the softer wheats produce flour of inferior baking qualities. In 

 order to differentiate between these quahties of the flour, the terms 

 "strong" and "weak" flour have been generally accepted. For the 

 purpose of this paper the definition {8Y adopted by a committee of 

 the National Association of British and Irish Millers will be accepted — 



A strong wheat is one which yields flour capable of making large, well-piled loaves; 

 the latter qualification thus excludes those wheats producing large loaves which do 

 not rise satisfactorily. 



Jago (9, p. 2gi) similarly defines "strength" as — 



the measure of the capacity of the flour for producing a bold, large-volumed, well- 

 risen loaf. 



Obviously those flours not meeting the above conditions must be 

 classed as "weak." 



HISTORICAL REVIEW 



It is far beyond the scope of the present paper to enter into a complete 

 historical discussion of the work which has been undertaken in attempts 

 to ascertain what factors are responsible for the strength of flour. An 

 enormous amount of literature has accumulated within the last 20 or 30 

 years, and this literature has been reviewed from time to time by workers 



* Published, with the approval of the Director, as Paper io8 of the Journal Series of the Minnesota Agri- 

 cultural Experiment Station. 

 » Formerly Assistant in the Division of Agricultural Biochemistry, University of Minnesota. 

 ' Reference is made by number (italic) to "Literature cited," p. 417-418. 



Journal of Agricultural Research, Vol. XIII, No. 8 



Washington, D. C. May 20, 19 iS 



no Key No. Minn.-s? 



(389) 



.Aki-tJ-irs. 



