Release of carbon dioxide from dough during baking

Abstract

Abstract Dough was baked in a closed container from which the volatiles were swept with a stream of nitrogen. Carbon dioxide was determined colorimetrically by absorption in an alkaline indicator solution contained in a special cell, in which the flow of gases caused rapid circulation of the absorbent. Graphs of carbon dioxide release against time in oven were sigmoid in form, showing induction periods averaging 4.5 min for mechanically developed (CBP) doughs mixed with fat, and 2.3 min without fat. Analysis of the variance of induction periods and of loaf volumes showed that, in each case, the factor “fat versus no fat” was highly significant. Induction periods were highly correlated with loaf volumes. These results show that loaf volumes are considerably influenced by changes in the permeability of doughs to carbon dioxide at the start of baking. The possibility was considered that carbon dioxide release may occur at a definite transition temperature which is affected by the addition of fat.