Nucleation and Expansion During Extrusion and Microwave Heating of Cereal Foods

Expansion of biopolymer matrices is the basis for the production of a wide variety of cereal foods. A limited number of manufacturing processes provide practical solutions for the development of an impressive variety of expanded products, just by changing process variables. It is therefore essential that the mechanisms involved in expansion are well known and controlled. This paper summarizes the knowledge of nucleation and expansion in extruded and microwaved products available to date. The effect of processing conditions and properties of the biopolymeric matrix on nucleation and expansion are discussed. Moisture content enables the glassy polymeric matrix to turn into rubbery state at process temperatures, which allows superheated steam bubbles to form at nuclei and then expand, expansion being governed by the biaxial extensional viscosity of the matrix. Nucleation and expansion theories are presented along with quantitative data that support them.