Cereal Chem 50:512 - 519.  |  VIEW ARTICLE
Reactions of Oligosaccharides. III. Hygroscopic Properties.

B. J. Donnelly, J. C. Fruin, and B. L. Scallet. Copyright 1973 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

The hygroscopicities of a series of D-glucose polymers of DP3 through DP7 plus a sample of DP11 were determined to correlate the humectant properties of corn starch hydrolysates with their carbohydrate composition. This was achieved by exposing the dried samples to relative humidity (r.h.) environments of 25, 56, 75, and 90% at 75, 86, and 100 F. and measuring the weight gain every 24 hr. Also included in this study were samples of glucose, fructose, maltose, sucrose, sucrose/glucose (50:50 blend), sucrose/maltose (50:50 blend), and lactose. Results showed that the oligosaccharides have similar moisture adsorptive powers whereas the mono- and disaccarides vary considerably in their hygroscopicities, particularly at the high r.h. levels.