Effect of Centrifuging Yolk-Contaminated Liquid Egg White on Functional Performance

WHEN egg white becomes contaminated with yolk, it suffers a loss of certain desirable functional characteristics. This effect was noticed by St. John and Flor (1931) who reported that one drop of yolk in 30 ml. of egg white was sufficient to reduce the egg white foam volume from an original 135 ml. to 40 ml. Smith (1959) reported that as little as 0.01 percent of yolk would impair the functional performance of egg white. He also noted that greater dispersion of the yolk throughout the albumen increased the harmful effects. Several methods have been devised for estimating the amount of yolk in egg white (Cook and Mehlenbacher, 1946; Bergquist and Wells, 1956; Colburn, 1960; Cotterill, 1961) but information in the literature on the physical properties of yolk contaminated liquid egg white is limited. Likewise, several suggestions have been forwarded for alleviating the harmful effects of yolk (Murray and…