Extraction and Characterization of Cassava, Potato and Mango Starches

Abstract

Starches from cassava tubers, sweet potato, and mango seeds were isolated and characterized. The starches' proximate, elemental composition, physicochemical and physical properties, were studied. Cassava tuber yielded 93.45 percent, while Potato and Mango seed yielded 88.65 and 78.45 percent, respectively, in the proximate composition.  When compared to cassava at 5.49 and potato starch 5.72, which have a highly acidic pH, mango starch had a neutral pH of 6.9. The moisture content of starch extracted from cassava and mango was significantly closed values at 6.00 and 6.5 percent, respectively, when compared to potato, which had a moisture content of 4.5 percent. Cassava starch (0.0012±0.003, 0.08 ±0.01) had significantly lower protein and nitrogen levels than Potato (0.35±0.00001) and (0.06±0.03), and was significantly lower than Mango starch (0.35±0.01) and (0.06±0.01) (p <0.005). Cassava starch had the highest swelling capacity of 0.940 cm³ compared to 0.285 and 0.250 cm³ for mango and potato, respectively. Cassava and potato starches have significantly higher swelling capacities of 92.00 and 93.00 percent, respectively, than mango starch, which has a swelling capacity of 75.2 percent. Cassava starch had a greater moisture absorption index of 36.00, compared to Potato 24.10 and Mango starch 23.65 percent, which showed no significant difference. Mango starch had significantly higher sodium, potassium, and calcium concentrations than cassava and potato starch, but magnesium and phosphorus concentrations were significantly higher in mango starch than cassava and potato starch. All of the starches have outstanding characteristics and can be used interchangeably, especially in food and pharmaceuticals.