Non-destructive measurement of acidity of Chinese bayberry using Vis/NIRS techniques

Chinese bayberry (Myrica rubra Siebold and Zuccarini) is cultivated in southeast China for its edible fruits. In this research, the potential of using the visible/near infrared spectroscopy (Vis/NIRS) was investigated for measuring the acidity of Chinese bayberry, and the relationship was established between non-destructive Vis/NIRS measurement and the acidity of Chinese bayberry. Intact Chinese bayberry fruit was measured by reflectance Vis/NIR in 325–1075 nm range. The data set as the logarithms of the reflectance reciprocal (absorbance (log 1/R)) was analyzed in order to build the best prediction model for this characteristic, using several spectral pretreatments and multivariate calibration techniques such as partial least square regression (PLS). The model for prediction the acidity (r=0.963), standard error of prediction (SEP) 0.21 with a bias of 0.138; showed an excellent prediction performance. The Vis/NIRS technique has significantly greater accuracy for determining the acidity. This non-destructive, fast and accuracy technology can be used in food industry that would be beneficial to human health.