Influence of osmotic dehydration process parameters on the quality of candied pumpkins

The influence of osmotic dehydration process parameters on the efficiency of water loss and sucrose gain of pumpkins and the influence on the quality of the final product are essential for production of superior quality candied pumpkins. Mass transfer kinetics during osmotic dehydration of pumpkins were modelled by assuming Fickian diffusion of sucrose and water in unsteady state conditions, which described very well the experimental results for water loss and sugar gain. Water and sucrose effective diffusion coefficients increase significantly with temperature. Temperature and sucrose concentration had a significant influence on both water and sugar diffusion, increasing as the solution temperature increased. Significant increase in the effective water diffusivity and decrease in the sucrose effective diffusivity was observed when the sucrose solution concentration increased from 40 °Brix to 50 and 60 °Brix. From 50 to 60 °Brix, no difference in the effective diffusivities was observed. Candied pumpkins with higher sucrose content have a higher breaking stress, less breaking strain and lower work to fracture. Moreover, the product becomes harder and less elastic with increasing sucrose content, resulting in more brittle products, which seems to be related with reinforcement of the pumpkin cell wall matrix.     

OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION OF PINEAPPLE

The effects of sugar type, sugar concentration, immersion time and temperature on the mass transfer of osmotic dehydration were studied using pie shape slices (7 mm thick with its center cork thrown away) of fresh pineapple (Queen variety, 90% maturity). The dehydration process was performed using two type of sugar as an osmotic agent (glucose and sucrose), three levels of sugar concentration (50, 60, and 70%), three levels of temperature (30, 50, and 70 °C), and three levels of immersion time (3, 6, and 9 hours). Following the osmotic dehydration process, the pineapple was dried at 70 °C for 48 hours. The mass transfer was then calculated and analyzed statistically. Sugar type, concentration, temperature, and length of immersion, have a significant effect on the mass transfer of osmotically dehydrated pineapple. The highest mass transfer of pineapple was found by using sucrose at the concentration of 70%, temperature 50 °C and 9 hours of immersion time.     

Osmotic Dehydration Pretreatment in Drying of Fruits and Vegetables

Several vegetables and fruits, apple, ginger, carrot, and pumpkin were dehydrated under various osmotic conditions using sucrose and salt as the permeating agents. The dehydrated materials were then dried. The influence of solute concentration, process temperature and the type of solute on osmotic dehydration and further thermal drying were investigated. The nutrition loss during the osmotic process was measured using carotene as the nutrition index. The effect of calcium chloride present in osmotic solution on the product quality was also studied. A first order kinetic model was chosen to describe the mass transfer phenomena of the osmotic process. The equilibrium value of water loss, solute gained, kinetic constants K_WL and K_SG under various conditions are successfully predicted by the model. The relationship between the equilibrium value and four major factors that influence osmotic process of carrot was obtained based on the experimental data. The relations between the loss constant of carotene and the solute concentration in carrot and pumpkin were obtained based on the experimental data. The qualities of dried products are better for the osmotic dehydration pretreated samples than those dried directly.     

Effect of reconditioning and reuse of sucrose syrup in quality properties and retention of nutrients in osmotic dehydration of guava

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of reconditioning and reuse (RR) of sucrose syrup in quality properties and retention of nutrients in guava during osmotic dehydration (OD). Two trials of 15 OD cycles were conducted with RR of osmotic solution. The parameters of water loss (WL) and solid incorporation (SI), as well as microbial load and physical–chemical properties of syrup and fruit were evaluated. The results showed that the RR did not modify the parameters WL and SI, and the microbial load remained low. The RR did not influence the color of osmodehydrated fruit, as well as the nutrient retentions, but probably it influenced the citric acid and reduced sugar retentions. At the end, the syrup was enriched of vitamin C, polyphenols, potassium, with traces of lycopene, β-carotene, and other minerals (Fe, Mg, Mn, and Zn) and could be used to formulate new products.     

Application of Ultrasound and Ultrasound-Assisted Osmotic Dehydration in Drying of Fruits

This work examines the influence of ultrasonic and ultrasonic assisted osmotic dehydration pretreatments on the dehydration of eight fruits (banana, genipap, jambo, melon, papaya, pineapple, pinha, and sapota). An overview of the effects of ultrasound application on water loss, sugar gain, and effective diffusivity of water during the dehydration process is presented. The results showed significant differences for water loss and sugar gain among the fruits that were studied, which were analyzed based on the changes observed on the tissue structure of the fruit. The results also showed that the effective diffusivity of water in the fruit increased after application of ultrasound reducing air-drying time.     

Use of Ultrasound as Pretreatment for Dehydration of Melons

This work examined the influence of the ultrasonic pretreatment prior to air drying on dehydration of melon (Curcumis melo L.). Ultrasonic pretreatment for air drying of fruits was studied and compared with osmotic dehydration. This study allowed estimate of the effective diffusivity water in the air-drying process for melons submitted to ultrasonic pretreatment. Results show that the water effective diffusivity increases after application of ultrasound causing a reduction of about 25% in the drying. During ultrasonic treatment the melons lost sugar, so such a pretreatment stage can be a practical process to produce dried fruits with lower sugar content. Compared to osmotic dehydration, the use of ultrasonic pretreatment performed better when large amounts of water need to be removed from the fruit, since the combined processing time (pretreatment and air drying) is shorter.     

Optimization of Osmotic Dehydration of Kiwifruit

Mass transfer rates were quantitatively investigated during osmotic dehydration of kiwifruit slices using response surface methodology with the sucrose concentration (20-80%, w/w), temperature of sucrose solution (15-75°C), osmotic time (60-420 min), and slice thickness (2-10 mm) as the independent process variables. Quadratic regression equations are obtained to describe the effects of independent process variables on the water loss (WL), sucrose gain (SG), and ascorbic acid loss (AAL). It was found that all factors had significant effect on the WL during osmotic dehydration of kiwifruit. Effects of temperature, time, and slice thickness were more pronounced on SG than the effect of concentration of sucrose solution. The osmotic solution temperature was the most significant factor affecting the AAL, followed by slice thickness and duration of treatment. The optimal conditions for osmotic dehydration were: 60% sucrose concentration, 30-40°C osmotic temperature, 150 min osmotic time, and 8 mm slice thickness.     

Osmotic dehydration of lemon (Citrus limon L.) slices: Modeling mass transfer kinetics correlated with dry matter holding capacity and juice sac losses

Osmotic dehydration of lemon slices was performed using hypertonic NaCl solution. Due to low dry matter holding capacity (DHC) of lemon, the moisture loss, salt gain, and solid loss kinetics during osmotic dehydration were studied by considering the loss of juice sacs from lemon. The slices were immersed in the osmotic solutions maintained with four concentrations of NaCl (5–20%, w/v) and three temperatures (30, 40, and 50°C) for predetermined time intervals (10–180?min). The sample to solution ratio was maintained at 1:10. Azuara model based on Peleg model was used to determine the equilibrium moisture loss and salt gain. Apart from the moisture loss and salt gain, it was found that the loss of solid constituents and juice sacs from the fruit into the osmotic solution was significant. Therefore, the DHC was determined to correlate the rate of solid loss. The DHC was found to be greatly affected by temperature as lemon was less capable to withhold its cell integrity at higher temperature. A combined correlation model was used to determine the effect of osmosis time, solution concentration, and temperature on moisture loss, salt gain, and solid loss. High temperature is not preferable for osmotic dehydration of lemon as it increases losses. The optimal condition was found to be 20% salt concentration and 30°C osmotic solution for 180?min to attain high moisture loss, less solid loss, and required salt uptake within allowable limits.     

Air-Drying Kinetics of Osmotically Dehydrated Fruits

ABSTRACT

The air drying kinetics of fresh and osmotically dehydrated fruits (apples) was determined. Two sugars, glucose and sucrose, were used as osmotic dehydration agents. Three levels of sugar concentration (15%, 30% and 45%) and several times of immersion into the sugar solution were used. Following the osmotic preconcentration, the fruit samples were dried at 55°C and the weight of material was recorded. The effective water diffusivity of samples treated under various osmotic conditions was estimated and the results were related to the sugar content and the bulk porosity of the samples. The effective water diffusivity, resulting from the application of the diffusion equation to the drying kinetics of the apples was found to decrease significantly for the samples pretreated by a concentrated sugar solution (e.g. 45%), evidently due to the lower porosity and other physicochemical factors. The low diffusivity may be beneficial in the storage stability and utilization of dehydrated fruits.     

Prediction of water and soluble solids concentration during osmotic dehydration of mango

The objective of this work was to develop a mathematical model to predict the kinetics of the change in water and soluble solids fractions in mango (cv. Haden) osmotically dehydrated in a sucrose solution. A full factorial design at three levels was used, varying temperature (T) and concentration of soluble solids in the osmotic solution (SSC). The models based on the Weibull distribution were built up in two steps: (i) primary models to determine the kinetic parameters at constant T and SSC, (ii) secondary models to further include the influence of T and SSC on the parameters of the primary model. The Weibull model can successfully describe both water and sugar fractions during osmotic dehydration (R² = 0.98 and 0.96, respectively for water and sugar models). The time constant (τ) for both models followed an Arrhenius-type relationship with temperature, with the reference time constant (τ_ref) at the average T and increasing linearly with SSC. The shape factor (β) was constant. The prediction accuracy of the models to predict water and sugar fraction was tested by cross validation and using a third set of experimental data, showing very good results with shrinkage values below 4.6% and errors on predictions lower than 1.6%.     

Apple osmotic dehydration described by three-dimensional numerical solution of the diffusion equation

ABSTRACT

In the present study, experimental data of osmotic dehydration kinetics of apple, cut into slices with parallelepiped shape, were simulated using two types of diffusion models. Model 1 considers the constant values of mass diffusivities and volume of the slices. Model 2, on the other hand, considers variable mass diffusivities and also the shrinkage of the product. The numerical solution of the three-dimensional diffusion equation in Cartesian coordinates was obtained through the finite volume method, with a fully implicit formulation and boundary condition of the first kind. Process parameters were determined by optimization using the experimental data sets, through the minimization of an objective function, called χ². The results of the osmotic dehydration kinetics were compatible with those of other studies found in the literature. Process temperature and osmotic solution concentration had influence on the phenomenon, but temperature was preponderant. A study was conducted on water and sucrose distribution during the osmotic dehydration. The results obtained through the mathematical model that considered the variable diffusivity and shrinkage showed greater adequacy to the experimental data.     

Osmo-Convective Drying of Fruits and Vegetables: Technology and Application

With reference to typical food preservation processes which consist of changing the water binding to material, the technology and application of osmotic dehydration were discussed as an initial treatment before convection drying of fruit and vegetables. Particular attention was paid to the possibilities to produce more shelf-stable food while keeping the high quality of final product. The course of osmotic dehydration of plant tissue as well as its influence on convection drying and on the properties of preserved fruit and vegetables were presented.     

Osmotic Dehydration of Apple Cylinders: II. Continuous Medium Flow Heating Conditions

Mass transfer of apple cylinders during osmotic dehydration was quantitatively investigated under continuous medium flow conditions. The influences of the main process variables (solution concentration, operation temperature, contact time, and solution flow rate) were determined. A second-order polynomial regression model was used to relate weight reduction (WR), moisture loss (ML), solids gain (SG), and mass diffusivity (D _m and D _s ) to process variables. The conventional diffusion model using a solution of Fick's unsteady state law involving a finite cylinder was applied for moisture diffusivity and solute diffusivity determination. Diffusion coefficients were in the range of 10^?9–10^?10 m²/s, and moisture diffusivity increased with temperature and flow rate, increased with solution concentration (> 50°Brix), and decreased with increasing solution concentration (< 50°Brix), but solids diffusivity increased with temperature and concentration and decreased with increasing flow rate. A continuous-flow osmotic dehydration (CFOD) contactor was developed to be a more efficient process in terms of osmotic dehydration efficiency: time to reach certain weight reduction (T _w ) and moisture loss (T _m ) were shorter than that of conventional osmotic (COD) dehydration processes. Effectiveness evaluation functions used in this study could be widely applied to osmotic dehydration system evaluation.     

Quality optimisation of combined osmotic dehydration and microwave assisted air drying of pineapple using constant power emission

Combination of osmotic dehydration with microwave assisted air drying offers increased flexibility for process control and product quality. Osmotic dehydration (55°Brix solution at 40 °C for 90 min) combined with microwave assisted air drying (MWAD) was tested on smooth cayenne pineapples. The influence of the four most relevant processing parameters (osmotic treatment time, microwave power, air temperature and air velocity) was studied using a 2⁴ circumscribed central composite experimental design. The product quality was evaluated in terms of charred appearance at the surface, moisture content, soluble solids content, water activity, firmness, colour and volume. Microwave power and air temperature were the two most important processing parameters that influenced the quality of the dehydrated pineapple, with the parameters most affected by the operating conditions being water content and percentage of charred pieces. Only in the latter was a significant quadratic effect found, all others were approximately linear. There was also a significant interactive effect between microwave power and air temperature affecting the percentage of charred pieces. Model predictions using a quadratic surface for water content and % charred pieces were validated with an additional experiment. Quadratic models were used to indicate optimum drying conditions for various targets.     

Application of Osmotic Dehydration Technology on Jam Processing

A new jam technology was developed in which osmotically dehydrated fruits were used directly in jam processing. Since the fruits undergo a process at lower temperature (35-40°C) for short time during osmotic dehydration, the new jam product exhibits surperior natural colour, good flavour and overall quality. Sugar solution spent in osmotic dehydration treatment can be used in jam.     

Dehydration of potato slices following brief dipping in osmotic solutions: Effect of conditions and understanding the mechanism of water loss

A novel variant of osmotic dehydration, named here as postdipping dehydration—where a material is dipped in a salt or sugar solution for a very short time followed by simple exposure to ambient conditions was explored with the aim of lowering water content of potato slices but at the same time not gain a high level of sugar/salt. The rate of water loss, which was rapid initially, was found to approach equilibrium. This article also explored whether the water loss process could subsequently be kick started once again, by employing a multistage process, where each stage consisted of osmotic solution dipping followed by ambient holding of the potato slices that had reached equilibrium in the earlier stage. Water loss values comparable to conventional osmotic dehydration could be achieved thus, but with significantly lower overall solid gain (<50%)—which can potentially yield a significantly healthy product option.     

Application of Osmotic Dehydration Technology on Jam Processing

ABSTRACT

A new jam technology was developed in which osmotically dehydrated fruits were used directly in jam processing. Since the fruits undergo a process at lower temperature (35-40°C) for short time during osmotic dehydration, the new jam product exhibits surperior natural colour, good flavour and overall quality. Sugar solution spent in osmotic dehydration treatment can be used in jam.     

Optimization of Osmo-convective Dehydration Process for the Development of Honey-ginger Candy Using Response Surface Methodology

Osmotic dehydration of ginger with honey is an interesting alternative for the development of confectionary-based functional food with extended shelf life. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to investigate the effects of process variables on solid gain, water loss, and overall acceptability of honey-ginger candy. The process variables included blanching time (6–10 min), osmotic solution temperature (30–50°C), immersion time (90–150 min), and convective drying temperature (50–70°C). The honey to ginger ratio was 4:1 (w/w) during all the experiments. Ginger cubes were blanched before osmotic dehydration to increase the permeability of the outer cellular layer of tissue. After osmotic concentration of ginger with honey, convective dehydration was done to final moisture content of 3–5% (w.b.) to make it a shelf-stable product. Finally, osmo-convectively dried ginger was coated with sucrose for candy preparation. The optimum osmo-convective process conditions for maximum solid gain, water loss, and overall acceptability of honey-ginger candy were 7.07 min blanching time, 50°C solution temperature, 150 min immersion time, and 60°C convective drying temperature.     

PREDICTION OF QUALITY CHANGES DURING OSMO-CONVECTIVE DRYING OF BLUEBERRIES USING NEURAL NETWORK MODELS FOR PROCESS OPTIMIZATION

Artificial neural network (ANN) models were used for predicting quality changes during osmo-convective drying of blueberries for process optimization. Osmotic drying usually involves treatment of fruits in an osmotic solution of predetermined concentration, temperature and time, and generally affects several associated quality factors such as color, texture, rehydration ratio as well as the finish drying time in a subsequent drier (usually air drying). Multi-layer neural network models with 3 inputs (concentration, osmotic temperature and contact time) were developed to predict 5 outputs: air drying time, color, texture, and rehydration ratio as well as a defined comprehensive index. The optimal configuration of neural network model was obtained by varying the main parameters of ANN: transfer function, learning rule, number of neurons and layers, and learning runs. The predictability of ANN models was compared with that of multiple regression models, confirming that ANN models had much better performance than conventional mathematical models. The prediction matrices and corresponding response curves for main processing properties under various osmotic dehydration conditions were used for searching the optimal processing conditions. The results indicated that it is feasible to use ANN for prediction and optimization of osmo-convective drying for blueberries.     

INFLUENCE OF OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION ON TEXTURE AND PECTIC COMPOSITION OF KIWIFRUIT SLICES

In order to optimize the osmotic dehydration process as a pre-treatment to freezing, chemical and structural characteristics of the raw fruit have to be studied together with their influence on the solid liquid exchanges and on the quality of the end products

Textural properties of fruits are intimately associated with the cellular structure and pectic composition. So the influence of osmodehydration on the modification of texture and water-soluble, oxalate-soluble and residual protopectin in kiwifruit slices was studied. To determine the optimum firmness level of the raw kiwifruit, the fruits were processed at three instrumentically measured texture levels: firm, medium and soft. Chemical and physical analyses showed that the biggest difference among the three groups of fresh kiwifruit was the protopectin content which was correlated directly with texture. No relationships were found between texture changes and pectic composition during osmodehydration, the slight firmness increase probably being produced by the soluble solids concentration.