Study On The Physical And Chemical Properties Of Alfalfa Powder And The Preparation Technology Of Its Chewable Tablets

Alfalfa is a kind of legume herb with a wide planting range,which is rich in protein,dietary fiber,polyphenols,flavonoids and other active ingredients.But at present,alfalfa is mainly used as animal feed,and alfalfa functional food needs further development.This study compared the biological characteristics of Alfalfa in different harvest time,measured and analyzed the physical and chemical characteristics of different parts and different particle size of alfalfa powder,and optimized the preparation process of Alfalfa chewing tablets,in order to provide theoretical guidance for the development of Alfalfa functional food.The main research contents and conclusions are as follows:(1)The plant height,branch number,stem leaf ratio of Alfalfa in budding stage,early flowering stage and blooming flowering stage were compared.The results showed that the growth speed of Alfalfa from budding stage to early flowering stage was rapid,and the yield also increased rapidly.The growth speed from early flowering stage to blooming flowering stage was slow,and the yield tended to be stable.From budding stage to blooming flowering stage,the proportion of stem to the whole plant increased gradually.Considering the yield and nutritional value comprehensively,it was confirmed that the best harvesting time of alfalfa was the early flowering time.(2)The results showed that the contents of protein,polysaccharide,polyphenol and total flavonoids in the upper leaves of alfalfa were 28.62%,20.94 mg / g,6.47 mg / g and 12.45 mg / g,respectively,and they had good swelling power,antioxidant activity and the ability to absorb harmful substances,but the water holding capacity and oil holding capacity were lower than those of stem.(3)The particle size of alfalfa leaf powder is in the range of 0.063-0.250 mm,the active components,functional characteristics,powder properties and microstructure of alfalfa leaf powder with different particle sizes were compared.The results showed that with the decrease of particle size of alfalfa leaves,the dissolution of polysaccharides,polyphenols and flavonoids increased gradually;the number of chemical groups,specific surface area and accumulated pore volume of the powder increased gradually,and the diameter of the most probable pore decreased gradually;the particle size was 0.125-0.16 mm alfalfa leaf powder has better water holding capacity,swelling power and fluidity;0.063-0.08 mm alfalfa leaf powder has better cation exchange capacity,antioxidant activity and ability to absorb harmful substances,but the fluidity of the powder needs to be improved.(4)Single factor and orthogonal experiments were used to optimize the preparation process of Alfalfa chewable tablets.The results showed that the best preparation process parameters of Alfalfa chewable tablets was: 30%,15%,10%,44%,1% of alfalfa leaf powder,oatmeal powder,flavoring agent,microcrystalline cellulose and magnesium stearate respectively,and the pressure was 20 k N.At this time,the hardness of chewable tablets was 45.50 N,the fragility was 0.37%,and the comprehensive index was31.93,which met the relevant requirements.