NMR and Electron Microscopy Studies of Soybean Seeds, Soybean Proteins, and Oil for Improved Utilization in Foods and Feeds

NMR, NIR and EM techniques are suitable methods of measuring protein and oil content in soybeans. After completion of a measurement with NMR or NIR, a soybean sample could be either replanted or consummated. NMR techniques involved in the present work are based on the response of nuclei, as nuclear spin flips, when set in a 7.05T magnetic field and excited with rf pulses of 300 MHz. NIR spectroscopy is based on outer electron molecular vibrations, when excited with radiation of frequency 1012 -4×1014Hz, and =2.5Om-750 nm. TEM and ESEM techniques are bulk and surface analysis techniques, respectively, working with electron beams of 15KV, and image resolution in the range of nm’s. ESEM is based on the possibility of imaging with secondary emitted electrons from the samples, and TEM on the possibility to have image contrast based on the difference in electron transmission through elements of different atomic weight. Novel results are presented by NMR, FT-NIR spectroscopy and Electron Microscopy for intact, selected soybean seeds accessions, soybean oil and soybean proteins