The rice flour has become an attractive ingredient in the extrusion industry due to its unique attributes such as bland taste, white color and hypoallergenicity. The purpose of this research was to produce and analyze pre-gelatinized rice flour (GRF) for thermoplastic extrusion. The GRF was extruded using a Brabender single screw extruder, varying moisture (19.2 - 24.8%) and extrusion temperature (108 - 192ºC). Torque, expansion index (EI), viscographic properties, water absorption index (WAI), and water solubility index (WSI) characteristics of GRF were analyzed using response surface methodology (RSM) and main component analysis (PCA). The results, analyzed by MRS and PCA, indicated that during the process, the values of torque and EI increased when lower moisture was used. Considering viscographic properties, GRF presented a higher initial viscosity of the starch paste when in higher temperatures, while viscosities at 95ºC and at 50ºC increased when temperature and moisture were at extreme opposites. WAI decreased when lower temperatures and higher moisture were used. WSI was not influenced by temperature and moisture when analyzed using MRS, but with PCA, there was an increase when temperatures ranged between 120 - 150ºC and moisture between 19.2 - 22%. In conclusion, both MRS and PCA analysis showed that a variation in the technological properties of GRF were related to the use of opposite extremes of temperature and/or moisture during the extrusion process, and the PCA was able to complete the analysis done using MRS.
Rice flour; thermoplastic extrusion; technological properties
