Physicochemical and nutritional properties of pomegranate juice powder produced by spray drying

Pomegranate juice powder could be applied as a valuable ingredient in other food and pharmaceutical products and be accessible throughout the year. In this research, pomegranate juice was spray dried at three maltodextrin levels (25, 35 and 45% w/w) and two inlet air temperatures (124 and 143 degrees C) and physicochemical and nutritional characteristics of the powder in terms of moisture content, pH value, ash content, color values, total phenolic compounds, along with microstructural properties of the pomegranate juice powders were analyzed. Inlet air temperature just could affect ash content of the powder while maltodextrin level could influence all properties of the final powder. SEM analysis revealed that lower maltodextrin levels and higher inlet air temperatures resulted in smaller but smoother particles. In conclusion, pomegranate juice powders produced at 25% maltodextrin level and 143 degrees C, with a low moisture content of 3.19%, high ash content of 0.58%, safe pH value of 3.4 and considerable total phenolic compounds of around 903 mg gallic acid/g db, are suitable and nutritionally-rich choices for industrial production.