Large-scale protein extraction from oat hulls using two hydrodynamic cavitation techniques: A comparison of extraction efficiency and protein nutritional properties

This study explored large-scale protein extraction from oat hulls using two hydrodynamic cavitation (HDC) devices, assessing extraction efficiency and protein nutritional qualities. The extraction methods HDC 50 (NaOH) and HDC 20 (NaOH) were shown to be 10.8 and 3.6 times more efficient in extracting protein compared to the conventional extraction (CE) method using NaOH. Similarly, HDC 50 (H₂O) and HDC 20 (H₂O) yielded 5.8 and 7.5 times more protein than CE (H₂O). HDC 50 exhibited a 2.3-fold increase in energy efficiency for extraction using NaOH and a 1.2-fold increase when using H₂O, in comparison to CE. Proteins extracted with HDC exhibited higher digestibility and amino acid content compared to CE (P < 0.05). Additionally, HDC processing, especially HDC 50, enhanced phenolic content and antioxidant activities post-digestion. The results highlight the potential of HDC to enhance the efficiency of extraction and increase the nutritional quality of oat protein isolates in terms of time and energy.