Design and Development of Innovative Steam Injection for High-Temperature Short-Time Liquid Foods

Jet impingement has been effective in reducing the process time and improvement of product quality in various industrial applications, such as textile and paper drying, electronic cooling, glass quenching and food processing. The current work applied innovative steam injection to liquid food continuous sterilization. The multiple impingement jets of steam and product came together in the impingement tank. The effects were investigated on the Reynolds number, steam temperature and jet-to-target spacing (H/d), sterilization temperature and heat transfer efficiency in water and pineapple juice tests. The Reynolds number was based on the nozzle configuration and liquid flow rate. The study investigated product injection plates formed using two, three or four circular holes (diameter 2 mm), steam injection plates with six, nine or twenty circular holes (diameter 1 mm), steam temperatures of 120, 125 or 130 °C and H/d values of 1, 3, 5 or 7. The different options were tested with water to determine the optimal conditions, and then tested with pineapple juice. The results showed that the optimal conditions from water testing that provided the highest heat transfer efficiency occurred with two jet nozzles, six steam injection plates, a steam temperature of 120 °C and an H/d value of 1.

Optimization of pineapple juice amount used as a negative oral contrast agent in magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography

To evaluate the potential variability of Manganese (Mn2+) in commercial pineapple juice (PJ) produced in different years and to identify the optimal Mn2+ concentration in the correct amount of PJ to be administered prior to Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) in order to suppress the gastroduodenal (GD) liquid signal. The Mn2+ concentration in PJ produced in different years was defined using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. The optimal Mn2+ concentration and the amount of PJ, were estimated in an in-vitro analysis, and were then prospectively tested in a population of patients who underwent MRCP. The results were compared with those achieved with the previous standard amount of PJ used in a similar population. The concentrations of Mn2+ in commercial PJ produced in different years did not differ. A total amount of 150 ml (one glass) of PJ having a high Mn2+ content (2.37 mg/dl) was sufficient for the suppression of the GD liquid signal, despite the additional dilution caused by GD liquids since it led to a final concentration of Mn2+ of 0.5–1.00 mg/dl. The optimized single-dose oral administration of 150 ml (approximately one glass) of PJ having a high Mn2+ concentration prior to MRCP was adequate to guarantee the correct amount of Mn2+ to suppress the GD signal.

High Retention and Purification of Bromelain Enzyme (Ananas comosus L. Merrill) from Pineapple Juice Using Plain and Hollow Polymeric Membranes Techniques

The demand for bromelian and pineapple fruit has been increasing substantially in the world because of their benefits for the human health and use in diverse areas. In this context, this work aimed to study the capacity of higher retention (concentration); bromelain activity underwent ultrafiltration from pineapple juice (Ananas comusus L. Merrill). All assays were carried out at pH 7.0 and 7.5, and at 0.05 and 0.40 bar of transmembrane pressures. Results have shown that at the best operating conditions, between 85 and 87% of bromelain activity was recovered using the plain membrane separation process at 0.05 bar. The ultrafiltration has shown the capacity to retain 100% of proteolytic activity of the bromelain extracted. The samples have kept the same physics properties after ultrafiltration, and the result was verified via electrophoresis. The bromelain enzyme obtained was characterized, and pH 7 and between 30 and 40 °C were the best conditions. Therefore, this work shows that the use of both polymeric membranes has shown high efficiency, and can be used in the purification of bromelain enzymes.

Fermentation Condition and Quality Evaluation of Pineapple Fruit Wine

This research investigated the impact of the concentration of pineapple juice on the characteristics of pineapple wine during fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. burgundy. Three ratios of fresh pineapple juice to water were mixed to obtain three treatments, which were T1—2:1, T2—1:1, and T3—1:2. The °Brix and pH of all pineapple juice and water ratios were adjusted to 25 and 4, respectively. The results showed that changes in alcohol, pH, Total Soluble Solids (TSS), Total Titratable Acidity (TAA, as citric acid), and Volatile Acidity (VA, as acetic acid) during the 10-day fermentation among three treatments were significantly different. The highest alcohol content was obtained from the 2:1 with values of 10.71% (v/v). The mixed ratio at 1:1 and 1:2 obtained the alcohol value of 9.61 and 8.35% (v/v), respectively. After ten days of fermentation, TSS, pH values, TAA, and VA were in the range of 9.7–13 °Brix, 3.56–3.82, 0.384–0.448, and 0.0013–0.0016, respectively. However, the appearance, aroma, and taste of all ratios were not significantly different. Sweetness and overall liking, wine with pineapple juice/water ratio at 2:1 had the highest score (p ≤ 0.05). The total antioxidant activities determined by DPPH and total phenolic content were 0.91 mmol/L TE and 365.80 mg/L GAE, respectively, as confirmed by FTIR spectral analyses.

Physical and Organoleptic Qualities of Milk-Based Caramel with Variations in Addition of Pineapple Fruit (Ananas comosus (L) Merr.)

The purpose of this study was to determine the physical and organoleptic qualities of milk-based caramel with variations in the use of pineapple (Ananas comosus (L) Merr.). The design of this study used a completely randomized design (CRD) with five treatments and four replications. The tested treatments include milk-based caramel, which was processed with pineapple juice at T0=0%; T1=5%; T2=10%; T3=15%; T4=20%. The research variables included physical quality testing consisting of water content and crude fiber content, further testing of texture, color, and panelists' preference as organoleptic parameters tested using sensory tests. The observations obtained will be processed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a level of 5% and will be further tested using Duncan's Multiple Range Test (DMRT) if it shows a significant effect. Based on the results of analysis of variance (ANOVA), the variation in various treatments with the addition of pineapple fruit in the milk-based caramel processing showed a significant effect (P<0.05) on the physical quality of caramel (crude fiber content and water content) and organoleptic quality (texture, color), and preference) on milk-based caramel products. The percentage of crude fiber content is 0.35%-4.50%; moisture content 10.15%-15.63%; texture score is hard to not hard; the color score is light brown to brown and liking score is slightly like to like. The conclusion of this research was the addition of pineapple affects crude fiber content, milk caramel water content, texture, color, and milk caramel preference.

Effect of Galangal Essential Oil Emulsion on Quality Attributes of Cloudy Pineapple Juice

Galangal essential oil is obtained from the rhizomes of galangal with proven anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiviral, and antimicrobial properties, which are valuable in the food industry. To explore the effect of galangal essential oil on the quality of pineapple juice, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.4% galangal essential emulsion were added, and their influence on the physical stability, physicochemical properties, microbial quantity, and aroma profiles of cloudy pineapple juice were evaluated. The essential oil emulsion of galangal is a milky white liquid with a strong aroma of galangal. The pH values of emulsion increased from 4.35 to 5.05 with the increase in essential oil concentration, and there was no significant difference in the particle size of the pineapple juice. The results showed that the galangal essential oil emulsion was stable and the stability of the cloudy pineapple juice was significantly enhanced by the essential oil emulsion determined using LUMiSizer. The cloudy pineapple juice with a 0.2% essential oil emulsion showed the most stability during storage. The lightness of the cloudy pineapple juice increased instantly with the essential oil emulsion addition. In addition, the microbial quantity of the cloudy pineapple juice was decreased by the individual essential oil emulsion or combined with thermal treatment to hold a longer shelf life. The microbial counts in pineapple juice treated by 0.4% essential oil emulsion and thermal treatment only increased from 1.06 to 1.59 log CFU/ml after 4 days of storage at 25°C. Additionally, the pH and total soluble solids showed a slightly increasing trend; however, the value of titratable acidity, free radical scavenging capacity, and ascorbic acid content of the cloudy pineapple juice showed no significant change. Finally, the results of the electronic nose showed that the aroma components of the pineapple juice were changed by the essential oil emulsion and thermal treatment, and the difference was especially evident in the content of the sulfur, sulfur organic, and aromatics compounds. Consequently, the results indicated that galangal essential oil emulsion can be used as juice additives to improve the quality attributes and extend the shelf-life of cloudy pineapple juice.

Plant-Derived Lactobacillus paracasei IJH-SONE68 Improves Chronic Allergy Status: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial

We have recently demonstrated that the exopolysaccharides (EPSs) produced by a plant-derived lactic acid bacterium, Lactobacillus paracasei IJH-SONE68, prevent and ameliorate allergic reaction on contact in dermatitis model mice. In the present study, we conducted a clinical trial using a capsule containing spray-dried powder from pineapple juice broth fermented with the LAB strain as an experimental diet. The clinical trial was conducted as a double-blind and placebo-controlled randomized comparative study from May 2019 to July 2021. Males and females between the ages of 21 and 70 who experience chronic allergies participated in the study. Sixty subjects were instructed to orally take a capsule containing the IJH-SONE68 powder or placebo, every day for 12 weeks. After the clinical trial was over, the scores based on subjects’ self-assessment of allergic status were significantly improved in the intervention group, as compared with the placebo group. Some serum biochemicals associated with inflammation response were also significantly improved by intake of the experimental diet. In conclusion, the IJH-SONE68-derived EPS improves chronic allergy status in humans and is expected to decrease their inconvenience.