Effect of Different Grinding Processes on Powder Characteristics of Tamarind Seeds

Tamarind seed powder (TSP) is a natural hydrocolloid source with an intended vast application in food industry. Different milling processes and moisture content found to affect the grinding properties of tamarind seeds. The present study was conducted to understand the grinding characteristics of tamarind seed powders prepared using attrition and hammer mills at different moisture levels. The average particle size and fineness modulus were found in the range of 0.99-1.36 and 0.39-0.45 for attrition and hammer mills, respectively, in moisture content range 5-15%. The values of Rittinger's constant and Kick's constant were found to be 1.6-1.9 and 0.8-1.5 for attrition mill, and 0.5-0.80 and 0.6-1.1 for hammer mill, respectively. Colour indicator, i.e. whiteness index (WI), found better values (82.29-81.11) for hammer-milled in comparison with (80.96-77.18) attrition-milled samples. Thermal conductivity values of hammer-milled samples were in the range of 0.046-0.069 W/m degrees C and 0.058-0.075, W/m degrees C for attrition-milled samples. Through the present analysis, hammer mill was found to be highly suitable for making TSP, whereas attrition mill did not give desirable results.