That is yet another reason why millers like the test weight measurement. Importantly, most shriveled kernels lower test weight, milling quality, and baking quality. Since quantifying the degree of shriveling is essential to understanding the components of test weight, we developed a method to give the degree of shriveling an objective score. The score is based on the independent results of two devices. One is aspiration.
Air is forced through a sample of kernels, which removes shriveled, lower density kernels.
The difference between starting weight and finished weight, or the starting test weight and the finished test weight partially indicate shriveling. It gives hardness, weight, diameter, and moisture content of individual kernels of wheat. Thus, together the test weight change due to aspiration and the SKCS kernel weight change due to aspiration indicate the degree of shriveling. Lightly shriveled kernels are those that produce small changed in kernel weight and test weight when they are aspirated. They receive a low score for shriveling in the upper left of the chart.