Potato starch
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Description
Polysaccharide granules obtained from the common white potato, Solanum tuberosum. Potato starch is primarily used as a thickening agent for foods in Europe while Cornstarch is more commonly use in the United States. When heated with water, potato starch forms a thick, gummy solution that becomes thinner with heating time. It thickens only slightly on cooling to forms a transparent gel that dries to a tough resilient film. Potato starch is used to size paper and textiles. It adds strength and tear resistance to paper.
Synonyms and Related Terms
farina; Arogum [Morningstar-Paisley]; Arojel P
Risks
- Susceptible to biodeterioration.
- Dried films become brittle with age.
Physical and Chemical Properties
- Egg-shaped grains with a faint off-center dark mark (hilum).
- Granule size = 15-100 micrometers.
- Gelatinization temperature = 59-68 C
- Reacts with a iodine/potassium iodide solution to give a positive purple color
Resources and Citations
- G.S.Brady, Materials Handbook, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1971 Comment: p. 767
- Rosalie Rosso King, Textile Identification, Conservation, and Preservation, Noyes Publications, Park Ridge, NJ, 1985
- Book and Paper Group, Paper Conservation Catalog, AIC, 1984, 1989
- Encyclopedia Britannica, http://www.britannica.com Comment: "cereal processing" [Accessed April 8, 2002]
- Irving Skeist, Handbook of Adhesives, Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York, 1977 Comment: p. 193