Determining the distribution of ash in wheat using debranning and conductivity

Two bread cultivars and one durum Indian wheat cultivar were evaluated for ash distribution pattern using a McGill No. 2 rice polisher. Grains of all the wheat cultivars were debranned for 30, 60, 90 and 120 s and determined for ash content. Ash content progressively decreased with the increase in debranning time. Statistical analysis showed significant differences among cultivars for ash content and weight of grain removed by debranning. Ash determined by a standard method showed a linear relationship with conductivity (R2 value in the range of 0.93–0.99) among the cultivars. The conductivity of extract from whole and debranned grains was found to be highly influenced by extraction time as well as temperature.