EFFECT OF HEAT TREATMENT UPON THE GERMINATION OF WHEAT

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Grain of known moisture content was exposed m sealed pouches to constant temperatures between 60 and 99 C (140–210 F). The heating periods varied from 15 min to 10 hours. The loss of viability of wheat, resulting from these heat treatments, was found to occur at two rates. During the early stages of heating particularly at temperatures below 65 C (150 F), the rate of loss of viability was quite small. After a period of heating, the rate of loss of viability increased markedly. The length of the heating period required to initiate this rapid loss of viability varied with the moisture content of the grain and with the temperature to which the grain was exposed. Moist grain was much more susceptible to thermal damage than was dry grain.There did not appear to be a specific "killing temperature", or "threshold temperature" above which the seed was damaged. Damage to viability resulted from the cumulative effect of time and temperature, and there was a semi-logarithmic relationship between time and temperature for a given amount of loss of viability. It appears that there may be two kinetic mechanisms involved.

This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit: