(PTFS17-03-26) Minerals and Microstructural Composition of Instant Poundo Yam Flour Evaluated by Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy in a Scanning Electron Microscope System
Monday, July 27, 2026
2:38 PM - 2:42 PM ET
Location: Prince George's Hall B-E (The Hub) - Poster Theater 1 / Poster Board Number: PT1-3
Post Graduate Researcher University of Surrey Surrey, England, United Kingdom
Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.
Disclosure(s):
Ekpereka O. Anajekwu, PhD: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.
Objectives: Yam is an important tuber crop; particularly in African and Asian countries, it is consumed as a staple food. Traditionally, making pounded yam is tedious and time consuming because it involves using mortar and pestle. Instant poundo yam flour (IPYF) can be made by reconstituting in boiling water to make a dough. This process is simple and saves time. This study analyzed the mineral and microstructural composition of different instant poundo yam flours by using Scanning Electron Microscope—Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDX).
Methods: Two varieties of yam (Puna and Punjo), processed into instant poundo yam flour by peeling, washing, slicing (2 mm thickness), parboiling at 100oC, oven (60oC for 48 h) or freeze (-50oC, 20 Pa for 48 h) dried before milling into flour with blender. The flours were sieved (0.3 mm aperture) and packaged in airtight containers. A packaged instant poundo yam flour was purchased from an African store and used as control. The yam flours were spread on the SEM studs with a double-sided sticker tape and coated with a thing layer of gold-palladium alloy. For mineral analysis, SEM with EDX software was used, focusing at different points at 7KV voltage, 10 mm distance between the detector and stage, and 500 magnification. For microstructure properties, voltage - 2KV, current - 0.1 nA and magnification - 350 were used. Statistical analysis was done by ANOVA.
Results: The results showed that there is a significant difference (p < 0.05) in minerals of the yam samples such as carbon (30.56-53.82 %), nitrogen (6.40-8.27 %), oxygen (34.56-56.15 %), and potassium (1.95-5.72 %) which were predominant in all samples. Yam samples contained low or no sodium, and silicon at a safe level. Other minerals detected in some samples were magnesium (0.20-0.45 %), phosphorus (0.45-0.80 %) and sulphur (1.00-5.20 %). The SEM images showed oval shapes, large block masses and irregular structures depending on the samples. The structures of yam samples revealed the binding of starch particles with other components such as fiber and protein which provides additional information of their functionality and cooking properties.
Conclusions: SEM-EDX offered a fast approach to detect the minerals in different samples and the differences in minerals may be due to yam varieties and drying methods.
Funding Sources: Vice chancellor award, University of Surrey UK and Turing funding
