Cereal Chem 53:141 - 149.  |  VIEW ARTICLE
An Autoradiographic Demonstration of the Penetration of Water into Wheat During Tempering.

N. L. Stenvert and K. Kingswood. Copyright 1976 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Autoradiography was used to study the movement of temper water into the bran, germ, and starchy endosperm of wheat prior to milling. At short time intervals after damping, water was heavily concentrated in the germ and bran layers. There appeared to be a rapid entry of water where the germ met the bran on the dorsal side of the grain. Subsequent movement of water occurred mainly in the dorsal region of the grain and only later in the central crease regions, although diffusion from the bran was occurring in all regions. The rate of penetration varied for different cultivars but the mode of movement was essentially the same.