Protein dispersibility index

The Protein Dispersibility Index (PDI) is a means of comparing the solubility of a protein in water, and is widely used in the soybean product industry.

A sample of the soybeans are ground, mixed with a specific quantity of water, and the two are then blended together at a specific rpm for a specific time. The resulting mixture and original bean flour then have their protein content measured using a combustion test, and the PDI is calculated as the percentage of the protein in the mix divided by the percentage in the flour - a PDI of 100 therefore indicates total solubility.