Abstract
UDC 537.528
The present article is devoted to the energy efficient and environmentally safe methods of electronic treatment of water-containing foodstuffs in order to extend their shelf life without changing their initial nutrition and biological properties. It is shown that high-voltage electric pulse treatment, instead of thermal pasteurization and sterilization, of fluid foodstuffs, is the least power-intensive in both the processing time and the temperature of heating the medium. It is revealed that the complete inactivation of microorganisms in the treated liquid medium is reached when the high-voltage installation meets the following requirements: temperature of heating the medium in the discharge chamber is higher than the critical one and is ~ 70°C; the high electric field intensity between the electrodes does not cause breakdown of the medium; the pulse amplitude is maximal; the pulse front is minimal (not over 20 ns) and the pulse duration is optimally long (not less than 100 ns). It is specified that the high-voltage pulse treatment with these parameters leads to the improvement of properties of the treated drinks, acquisition of new healthy properties, and extension of their shelf life.
Keywords: electric pulse treatment, water-containing medium, crude milk, extracts of juices, red wine, pulse front, pulse duration, high-voltage installation, inactivation of microorganisms, electric field intensity, heating temperature.