OPTIMIZATION OF THE OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION OF MANGO (MANGIFERA INDICA L.) SLICES

Fresh mango (Mangifera indica) slices were osmotically dehydrated using four treatment variables: treatment time, temperature, sugar concentration and slice thickness. Treatment times for 2, 4 and 6 mm slice thickness were 3, 5 and 7 h at temperatures of 20, 30 and 40°C and sugar concentrations of 40, 50 and 60% (w/w). The responses variables tested were weight reduction (WR), sugar gain (SG), final moisture content (M_f) and overall product acceptability (OA). A fractional factorial design (3 level-4 parameter) with 27 runs was used as the experimental design.

A Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was performed to analyze and predict the optimum conditions of the mango osmotic dehydration process. All treatment variables significantly affected WR, while SG and M_f were significantly affected only by thickness. On the other hand, none of the variables showed no significant effect on the OA.

The optimum conditions were determined with the following response limiting values: at least 30% WR, at least 8% in SG, M_f of not exceeding 70% were based on previous studies and panel evaluation results. The optimum conditions generated were: treatment time of 6 h, temperature of 35°C, sugar concentration of 65% (w/w) for 5 mm slice thickness. Results of validation tests were fairly acceptable since the Coefficient of Variation (CV) of the responses were less than 15% except for sugar gain with a 26.5% CV.     

TEMPERATURE AND CONCENTRATION EFFECTS OF OSMOTIC MEDIA ON OD PROFILES OF SWEET POTATO CUBES

A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of temperature and sucrose osmotic solution concentrations on osmotic dehydration profiles of sweet potato (Ipomea batata) cubes (3.5 cm sides). Two temperatures (26 and 50°C) and three concentrations (30:100, 50:100 and 70:100 w/w) were studied for various exposition times, up to 168 hours. Main influence was observed at higher temperature (50°C) due the fact that water loss (WL) and solids gains (SG) are faster and more intense. At 26°C no appreciable change in solids concentration was observed at distances deeper than 0.5 cm from the cubes surfaces even at 168 hours. At 50°C all the layers are affected even at shorter times (8 hours).     

Control of Polyphenol Oxidase Activity in Banana Slices During Osmotic Dehydration

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of sodium metabisulfite and 4-hexylresorcinol on polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity change in banana slices during osmotic dehydration in sucrose syrup.

From a previous study only three osmotic dehydration conditions were selected as the most adequate due to color change but also where PPO residual activity was still present after osmotic drying: T1 (60°Bx, 50°C, pH 6), T2 (60°Bx, 60°C, pH 8), and T3 (70°Bx, 50°C, pH 8). The level of sodium metabisulfite was varied from 100 to 1000 ppm and 4-hexylresorcinol from 10 to 100 ppm. The inner and outer parts of the banana slice were used for PPO activity determination at 302 nm with 4 methyl-catechol as a substrate.

During osmotic dehydration of a banana slice, PPO activity tended to decrease and residual enzymatic activity was still detected. Sodium metabisulfite concentration up to 200 ppm and 4-hexylresorcinol up to 50 ppm had no effect on PPO residual activity after 4 h of osmotic dehydration. Depending on the process conditions, a higher concentration of additives than these were necessary to control PPO activity during osmotic dehydration of banana slices.     

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

Continuous flow osmotic drying permits a better exchange of moisture and solids between the food particle and osmotic solution than the batch process. Osmotic drying has been well studied by several researchers mostly in the batch mode. Microwave heating has been traditionally recognized to provide rapid heating conditions. Its role in the finish drying of food products has also been recognized. In this study, the effects of process temperature, solution concentration on moisture loss (ML), solids gain (SG), and mass transport coefficients (k_m and k_s) were evaluated and compared under microwave, assisted osmotic dehydration (MWOD) versus continuous flow osmotic dehydration (CFOD). Apple cylinders (2 cm diameter, 2 cm height) were subjected to continuous flow osmotic solution at different concentrations (30, 40, 50, and 60°Brix sucrose) and temperatures (40, 50, and 60°C). Similar treatments were also given with samples subjected to microwave heating. Results obtained showed that solids gain by the samples was always lower when carried out under microwave heating, while the moisture loss was increased. The greater moisture loss strongly counteracted solids gain in MWOD and thus the overall ratio of ML/SG was higher in MWOD than in CFOD.     

STRUCTURAL CHANGES AND MASS TRANSFER DURING GLUCOSE INFUSION OF APPLES AS AFFECTED BY BLANCHING AND PROCESS VARIABLES

ABSTRACT

The effect of process variables and blanching on the rate of dewatering of apple slices through immersion in glucose solutions was analyzed. The adequacy of the Hawkes and Flink's and Peleg's models for fitting the rate data was evaluated as well as the structural changes produced in the tissue subjected to osmotic process. High concentration values (33-42 % (w/w)) of the soaking solution favored significantly water loss (WL) but only slightly affected solid gain (SG). Increasing system temperature over the range 20-50 °C generally provided an increase in WL and in SG. The increase in thickness decreased significantly both mass transfer rates. The use of sucrose instead of glucose lead to a greater SG while blanched samples showed higher rates of WL and SG. Microscopic studies revealed that, when applying short treatments, cells appeared slightly shrinked and cells walls folded. After long treatments, although an extensive     

Osmotic Dehydration of Apple Slices with Carboxy-Methyl Cellulose Coating

The effect of carboxy-methyl cellulose (CMC) coating on mass transfer process during osmotic dehydration of apple slices and its effect on salt absorption were investigated. The study was conducted using four concentrations of CMC (0.5, 1, 1.5, and 3%) and nine osmotic solutions comprising of glucose syrup (30, 40, and 50%) and salt (2, 4, and 6%). Sample contact time with the hypertonic solution was 15, 30, 60, 120, 180, 240, and 360 min. Both coated and uncoated samples were evaluated in terms of water loss (WL), solids gain (SG), WL/SG ratio, and salt absorption. Optimal condition was obtained when the CMC concentration of 1% was used with hypertonic solution comprising of 50% glucose syrup and 2% salt.     

EVALUATION AND MODELING OF TWO-STAGE OSMO-CONVECTIVE DRYING OF APPLE SLICES

Two-stage drying kinetics of cylindrical pieces of apples were evaluated by subjecting test samples first to various osmotic treatments and then to convective air drying to complete the drying process. Osmotic drying was carried out with cut apple cylinders of three different sizes (12, 17 and 20 mm diameter), all with a length to diameter ratio of 1 : 1, in a well agitated large tank containing the osmotic solution at the desired temperature. Solution to fruit volume ratio was kept greater than 60. After the osmotic treatment, apple slices were further dried in a cabinet drier at an average temperature 58°C. A central composite rotatable design (CCRD) with five levels of sucrose concentrations (34-63°Brix) and five temperatures (34-66°C) was used for osmotic treatment. Half-drying time and solids gain time were used as measures of rate of drying and associated diffusion coefficients for moisture loss and solids gain were evaluated. Half-drying time decreased with an increase in temperature or concentration, or a decrease in sample size. Diffusion coefficients were lower for smaller samples, and were higher for migration of moisture as compared to solids. For a given level of moisture removal, air drying times were shorter than osmotic drying times. Composite models were developed to describe the effect of process variables and particle size on the drying behavior of apple slices.     

Optimization of Osmotic Dehydration of Potato Cubes Under Pulsed Microwave Vacuum Environment in Ternary Solution

Optimization of the process parameters for osmotic dehydration of 12.2-mm potato cubes was carried out using response surface methodology. The experiments were conducted using a central composite rotatable design (CCRD) with four factors, viz. sucrose concentration (27.5–42.5% w/w), salt concentration (7.5–12.5% w/w), total osmosis time (26.25–68.75 min), and microwave power density for the initial 4 min (0.375–1.125 W/g of total weight of solution and potato cubes) at two levels each to take into account the individual and interaction effects of the factors. A sample-to-solution ratio of 1:10 and pressure of 0.16 kPa for the initial 4 min were kept constant throughout all of the experiments. It was found that the linear effects of all factors on the water loss (WL) and solids gain (SG) were highly significant. The optimum condition was found at a sucrose concentration of 36.35%, salt concentration of 12.50%, osmosis time of 68.72 min, and microwave power density of 0.38 W/g for the initial 4 min, with a WL of 37.26% initial weight and SG of 8.74% initial weight. The drying of potato cubes was carried out using hot air, microwave–vacuum, and osmotic microwave–vacuum drying methods. It was found that potato cubes dried by combined osmotic microwave–vacuum had better sensory qualities.     

Osmotic Dehydration of Apple Cylinders: I. Conventional Batch Processing Conditions

Osmotic drying was carried out, with cylindrical samples of apple cut to a diameter-to-length ratio of 1:1, in a well-agitated large tank containing the osmotic solution at the desired temperature. The solution-to-fruit volume ratio was kept greater than 30. A modified central composite rotatable design (CCRD) was used with five levels of sucrose concentrations (34-63°Brix) and five temperatures (34-66°C). Kinetic parameters weight reduction (WR), moisture loss (ML), solids gain (SG) were considered. A polynomial regression model was developed to relate moisture loss and solids gain to process variables. A conventional diffusion model involving a finite cylinder was also used for moisture loss and solids gain, and the associated diffusion coefficients were computed. The calculated moisture diffusivity ranged from 8.20 × 10^-10 to 24.26 × 10^-10 m²/s and the solute diffusivity ranged from 7.82 × 10^-10 to 37.24 × 10^-10 m²/s. Suitable ranges of main parameters were identified for OD kinetics further study.     

EQUILIBRIUM CONCENTRATION AND WATER AND SUCROSE DIFFUSIVITY IN OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION OF PINEAPPLE SLABS

The weight and water loss of 6 mm thick pineapple slabs (one of a six part of slice) were analyzed during osmotic dehydration in sucrose solution at different temperatures (50, 60 and 70°C), sucrose concentrations (50, 60 and 70°Bx) and pH's (6, 7 and 8), in 3³ experimental design. These results were fitted to a modified Azuara equation to obtain water and sucrose diffusivity results at equilibrium condition. Mean result of water diffusivity was 1.717 × 10^-5 cm²/s and sucrose diffusivity varied from 2.0 to 4.6 × 10^-5 cm²/s. The results of water loss at equilibrium in pineapple slabs varied between 0.6 to 0.67 g/g of initial sample weight. The results of sucrose gain at equilibrium varied between 0.15 and 0.21 g/g of initial sample weight. The results from mathematical modeling were compared to experimental results with r² = 0.94.     

Kinetic Aspects, Texture, and Color Evaluation of Some Tropical Fruits during Osmotic Dehydration

Osmotic dehydration of some tropical fruits like guava, melon, and papaya using sucrose and maltose solutions is presented in this article. The influence of sugar type and concentration, process temperature, and calcium salt addition on osmotic solution was investigated. Water loss and sugar gain up to 6 h of processing were evaluated and the effect of osmotic dehydration on fruit quality parameters like color and texture was analyzed. All studied variables affected the osmotic process kinetics, while for quality parameters the influence of sugar type or solution concentration and temperature was dependent on fruit and process conditions.     

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.     

Effect of Pulsed Electric Field and Osmotic Dehydration Pretreatment on the Convective Drying of Carrot Tissue

The influence of pulsed electric field (PEF) and subsequent centrifugal osmotic dehydration (OD) on the convective drying behavior of carrot is investigated. The PEF was carried out at an intensity of E = 0.60 kV/cm and a treatment duration of t_PEF = 50 ms. The following centrifugal OD was performed in a sucrose solution of 65% (w/w) at 40°C for 0, 1, 2, or 4 h under 2400 × g. The drying was performed after the centrifugal OD for temperatures 40-60°C and at constant air rate (6 m³/h).

With the increase of OD duration the air drying time is reduced spectacularly. The dimensionless moisture ratio Xr = 0.1 is reached for PEF-untreated carrots after 370 min of air drying at 60°C in absence of centrifugal OD against 90 min of air drying after the 240 min of centrifugal OD. The PEF treatment reduces additionally the air drying time. The total time of dehydration operations can be shortened when OD time is optimized. For instance, the minimal time required to dehydrate untreated carrots until Xr = 0.1 is 260 min (120 min of OD at 40°C and 140 min of drying at 60°C). It is reduced to 230 min with PEF-treated carrots.

The moisture effective diffusivity D_eff is calculated for the convective air drying based on Fick's law. The centrifugal OD pretreatment increases drastically the value of D_eff. For instance, 4 h of centrifugal OD permitted increasing the value of D_eff from 0.93 · 10^-9 to 3.85 · 10^-9 m²/s for untreated carrots and from 1.17 · 10^-9 to 5.10 · 10^-9 m²/s for PEF-treated carrots.     

TEMPERATURE AND CONCENTRATION EFFECTS OF OSMOTIC MEDIA ON OD PROFILES OF SWEET POTATO CUBES

A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of temperature and sucrose osmotic solution concentrations on osmotic dehydration profiles of sweet potato (Ipomea batata) cubes (3.5 cm sides). Two temperatures (26 and 50°C) and three concentrations (30:100, 50:100 and 70:100 w/w) were studied for various exposition times, up to 168 hours. Main influence was observed at higher temperature (50°C) due the fact that water loss (WL) and solids gains (SG) are faster and more intense. At 26°C no appreciable change in solids concentration was observed at distances deeper than 0.5 cm from the cubes surfaces even at 168 hours. At 50°C all the layers are affected even at shorter times (8 hours).     

Mass transfer coefficient and the characteristics of coated apples in osmotic dehydrating

In a dynamic osmotic dehydration from 0 to 180 min, the influence of different edible coating materials such as Low-Methoxyl Pectinate (LMP), Carboxyl-Methyl Cellulose (CMC), Corn Starch, and an osmotic sucrose solution with two concentration of 50% and 60% (w/w) on apple rings and their physical characteristics were studied, which included: moisture loss (ML), solid gain (SG), ML/SG ratio, effective diffusivity of solute and water (D_es, D_ew). The qualitative characteristics such as: firmness of the texture or shear stress (SS), and Browning index (BI) were also tested. Using Fick's first and second laws, the effective diffusion coefficient of water and solute were calculated. Osmosed apples in solution with 60% sucrose concentration, showed higher ML/SG ratio than other samples and, apples coated with 2% CMC and osmodehydrated in 60% sucrose, showed not only higher ML/SG ratio but higher diffusivity coefficient as well. The results showed that in comparison with non-coated samples, coating process can cause to improve the textural structure of the apple rings. By increasing the concentration of osmotic solutions, the Browning index (BI) of both coated and uncoated samples decreased.     

Drying of Chestnuts (Castanea sativa Mill.) after Osmotic Dehydration with Sucrose and Glucose Solutions

Chestnuts were dehydrated by using a combined method of osmotic dehydration followed by air drying. Samples were osmotically pretreated with sucrose (60% w/w) and glucose (56% w/w) for 8 h, air-dried at temperatures of 45, 55, and 65°C, at a relative humidity of 30% and at a velocity of 2.7 m·s^-1 and the experimental data of the drying kinetics were obtained. Whole samples were dried with different peelings: (a) removal of endocarp and pericarp (peeled) and (b) additionally the internal rough surface (cut). In all cases, cut chestnuts show greater drying rates than peeled samples, indicating that a significant mass transfer resistance in the layer nearest to the surface takes place. Peeled samples pretreated with sucrose solutions behave in a similar way to untreated samples. For the rest of the samples, the cut samples osmotically treated with sucrose solutions and all the samples treated with the glucose solution, the drying rates decrease during drying. Drying kinetics are successfully modeled by employing a diffusional model that takes the shrinkage into account. The effective coefficient of water diffusion was evaluated and correlated with temperature. The quality of the final product was monitored by color change. In spite of the fact that the total color difference is not modified by the osmotic treatment, the L*, a*, and b* color coordinates of cut samples treated with sucrose and glucose solutions do undergo changes; the L* and a* coordinates change less than the b*.     

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.     

Thin Layer Drying Models for Osmotically Pre-dried Young Coconut

Thin layer convection drying was performed on osmotically pre-dried young coconut, strips, both thin and thick. A drying air temperature range of 50-70°C and an airflow of 0.25 m s^-1 was used to dry samples soaked in three sugar solution concentrations (40, 50, and 60°B) during the osmotic drying phase, with the convection drying alone serving as control. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed that sugar concentration and thickness significantly affected osmotic drying rates as shown by their final moisture contents. While the drying air temperature and slab thickness significantly affected the average drying rate and the sugar concentration was an insignificant factor during convective drying phase. Effective diffusivity of water during hot air drying varied from 1.71 to 5.51 × 10^-10 m²s^-1 over the temperature range investigated, with energy of activation equal to 1173.0 kJ/kg. Three mathematical models available in the literature were fitted to the experimental data, with the Page model giving better predictions than the single or double term exponential model. The temperature dependence of the diffusivity coefficients was satisfactorily described by a simple Arrhenius type relationship.     

OSMOTIC DRYING KINETICS OF CYLINDRICAL APPLE SLICES OF DIFFERENT SIZES

The objective of this study was to evaluate the osmotic drying kinetics of cylindrical slices of apples as influenced by particle size at different concentrations of sucrose solutions and different temperatures. Osmotic drying was carried out, with cut apple cylinders of three different sizes (12, 17 and 20mm diameter), all with a length to diameter ratio of 1:1, in a well agitated large tank containing the osmotic solution at the desired temperature. The solution to fruit volume ratio was kept greater than 60. A central composite rotatable design (CCRD) was used with dive levels of sucrose concentrations (34-63°Brix) and five temperatures (34-66°C). Kinetic parameters included weight loss, moisture loss, solids gain, rates of moisture loss and solids gain generally increased with increasing treatment time, temperature and concentration of osmotic solution, and decreased with an increase in sample size. The parameter “osmotic drying time to achieve a given moisture loss” obviously showed the opposite. Composite models were developed to describe the effect of process variables and particle size on the drying behavior of apple slices.     

MASS TRANSFER IN BANANA CHIPS DURING OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION

The effects of temperature ( 50, 60 and 70 °C ), sucrose concentration ( 50, 60 and 70° Brix ) and pH ( 6,7 and 8 ) on the mass transfer during osmotic dehydration of banana chips were studied. Fitting a diffusion model gave apparent diffusivity values varied from 2.77 to 2.66 × 10^-9 m² s^-1 and depending on temperature and sucrose concentration but not on pH changes. The effct of syrup/product volume ratio on the mass transfer kinetics was also investigated.