TITLE:
The Hydration Kinetics of Selected Ghanaian Maize (Zea mays L.) Hybrids
AUTHORS:
Isaac Godfred Antwi, Ahmad Addo, Ato Bart-Plange
KEYWORDS:
Maize, Water Absorption, Diffusion Coefficient, Activation Energy
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Applied Sciences,
Vol.12 No.1,
January
24,
2022
ABSTRACT: Water absorption characteristics of maize (Abotem, Abeleehi, and Dorke SR) hybrids grown in Ghana
were investigated using models obtained from Fick’s law of diffusion. The maize
kernels were soaked in water at four different temperatures of 30ºC, 40ºC, 50ºC
and 60ºC to evaluate their water absorption behaviours. The results indicated
that temperature and variety were the major factors controlling water
absorption patterns. The diffusion coefficients of the hybrids were found to
differ in the order of Dorke SR > Abeleehi > Abotem and increased as the
soaking temperature increased. The calculated water diffusivities varied from (2.54
- 3.49) × 10-10 m2/s for Abotem, (2.64 - 3.59) ×
10-10 m2/s for Abeleehi, (3.21 - 4.20) × 10-10/s for Dorke SR. The Arrhenius- type
equation was able to describe the strong effect of temperature on the diffusion
coefficient of the hybrids. The activation energy values obtained were7.50
kJ/mol for Abeleehi, 6.27 kJ/mol for Dorke SR and
9.09 kJ/mol for Abotem. Results indicated that temperature and variety
were the major factors controlling water absorption patterns.