Food Engineering Reviews最新文献

Needleless electrospinning, an electrohydrodynamic process, is an emerging approach to producing nanofiber mats from an open liquid surface. Importantly, the approach offers 3–250 times higher production rates than needle-based electrospinning systems and has the potential to develop biocompatible and biodegradable nanofibers that have numerous applications in the food industry. The electrospinning potential of various biomaterials (from plant and animal sources) in needleless configurations is highlighted in this review. Also, the factors influencing the production rate and quality of needleless electrospun nanofibers are emphasized. Further, the reported uses of needleless electrospun nanofiber mats in food applications like packaging, filtration, bioactive encapsulation, enzyme immobilization, and food quality sensing are presented. Finally, challenges and areas to be explored further are summarized, considering prospects. Electrospun nanofibers are valued for their characteristics and unique capabilities. However, often, scale-up production is challenging, limiting its usage in multiple commercial applications. Overcoming this concern, needleless electrospinning is a viable approach for scaling up the production of nanofibers. Offering properties on par with conventional electrospinning, the needleless approach is finding expanding avenues in different sectors.

For high-moisture foods, the water latent heat of fusion during a phase change process causes a significant discontinuity in the temperature-dependent apparent specific heat of food products, which leads to complications during the numerical solution of heat transfer problems. The discontinuity in the apparent specific heat as a function of temperature can be alleviated by smoothing. Previously, a piecewise approximation smoothing method was developed and extensively used. In this study, different approaches which are based on curve fitting, the use of a sigmoid function, and data interpolation were developed. The performance of these methods in numerical simulations of food freezing and thawing processes was evaluated. The heat transfer model was implemented with the MATLAB PDE Toolbox. Simulated temperature profiles of representative freezing/thawing processes showed a reasonable agreement with experimental values collected from the literature. The optimal smoothing method showed comparatively less numerical oscillation, higher accuracy, faster computation speed, and simplicity in implementation. Recommendations were provided for the utilization of the smoothing methods under different circumstances.

Double emulsions (DEs) have attracted wide attention because of its excellent encapsulation of hydrophilic and hydrophobic bioactives simultaneously. Nevertheless, the uncontrollable formation and poor stability of DEs limit their further application. Microfluidic technology is a novel strategy to produce DEs with exceptional monodispersity, excellent uniformity, configurable sizes, and adjustable internal droplet numbers. This review mainly summarized the advances of generation and stabilization of DEs based on the microfluidic strategy. We comprehensively focused on the fabrication of DEs under four different types of microfluidic chips and two common curing methods (in situ ultraviolet polymerization and in situ gelation) for DE stabilization, as well as the potential applications in bioactive loading. Also, the problem of efficient generation of microfluidic-produced droplets was raised, and the corresponding solutions were proposed. It could provide theoretical guidance on the development of DE formation and application based on the microfluidic strategy in the food industry.

Graphical Abstract

This review aims to approach the secondary shelf life (SSL) issue by providing an overview of the studies currently available on the subject and suggesting a theoretical framework to model the dependence of the SSL on the residual shelf life (RSL), a new concept introduced in this study. As it will be discussed later, to date, there are no systemic approaches and no guidelines to predict the dependence of the SSL on the RSL, even though the SSL is closely related to RSL. The few articles on the topic available in the literature are limited to assess the SSL of food, and its dependence on packaging systems or storage conditions after the package opening. The new approach based on the RSL can give a valid tool to industrial and scientific operators in the food sector for a more appropriate prediction of SSL. The enhanced awareness about a correct SSL prediction might lead to lower food waste generation.

Response surface methodology (RSM) is an experimental strategy widely used as a research tool in investigation. We reviewed 89 papers that used RSM to study the extraction of oils or minor lipids, using supercritical (SC) CO₂, and observed that most of these studies have not contributed to an understanding of the extraction phenomenon, by neglecting prior knowledge on mass transfer or equilibrium relationships. We used the extraction of carotenoids from rosehip shells and oil from the seeds, as a case study to illustrate an improved strategy to apply RSM to oil-aided SC-CO₂ extraction of high-molecular-weight nonpolar solutes, such as carotenoids. We selected the temperature and density to characterize the effect of solvent conditions, the specific CO₂ consumption to characterize the interaction of solvent time and solvent power, and the percentage of seeds in the composite substrate to characterize the cosolvent effect of the oil. A rotatable central composite design was applied sequentially in three blocks, where the third block allowed incorporating quadratic coefficients to adequately describe the non-linear behavior of the responses.

Edible packaging plays an important role in protecting food products from physical, mechanical, chemical, and microbiological damages by creating a barrier against oxidation, water, and controlling enzymatic activation. The employment of active agents such as plant extracts, essential oils, cross-linkers, and nanomaterials in edible packaging promises to improve mechanical, physical, barrier, and other properties of edible materials as well as food products. In the current review, we have compiled information on the recent advances and trends in developing composite (binary and ternary) edible packaging for food application. Several types of active agents such as essential oils, plant extracts, cross-linking agents, and nanomaterials as well as their functions in edible packaging (active composite) have been discussed. The present study provides the collective information about the high- (high-pressure homogenizer, ultrasonication, and microfludizer) and low-energy (phase inversion temperature and composition and spontaneous emulsification) methods for developing nanoformulations. In addition, concepts of comprehensive studies required for developing edible coatings and films for food packaging applications, as well as overcoming challenges like consumer acceptance, regulatory requirements, and non-toxic scaling up to the commercial applications, have also been discussed.

Freezing is one of the most effective and widely used preservation methods in the food industry. Freezing process means that the temperature of foods is reduced until the microbial growth and enzymatic activity are not possible; thus, the long-term preservation of foods is achieved. Since the rate of freezing is known to affect the distribution and size of ice crystals, the freezing rate is very important in the freezing process. In addition to the freezing process, it is known that the thawing process is also very important for the food quality. Similar to freezing, the rapid thawing method is preferred due to reduced weight loss, better texture, and prevention of microbial growth. For rapid freezing and thawing of food materials, various new technologies such as ultrasound, high pressure, and electric field are proposed instead of the traditional technologies currently used. These technologies provide to control ice crystal size, accelerate heat and mass transfer rates, and reduce tissue damage and weight loss. This review examines the effects of new technologies such as ultrasound, high-pressure, microwave, radiofrequency, magnetic field, and electric field on rapid freezing and thawing of foods while taking into account all the benefits and drawbacks. Additionally, this review is aimed to give guidance regarding the future research to enhance and, if required, combine current and developing technologies (high-pressure, ultrasound, microwave, radiofrequency, magnetic field, and electric field) to preserve foods with properties as near to fresh sample state as possible after freezing and thawing.

The demand for high quality foods has steadily increased as response to market pressures and to other factors. The concept of food quality (FQ) gradually evolved to address changes in consumer perceptions and due to available technological advances. Evolution followed from FQ 1.0 (defective foods removal) over FQ 2.0 (prevention-based quality assurance), FQ 3.0 (total quality management; TQM), and finally the upcoming concept of FQ 4.0 that is focused on advanced technologies (Internet of Things, Big Data, artificial intelligence, etc.) for improving traceability, food safety, and quality assurance. This evolution from FQ 1.0 up to 4.0 followed perfection of conventional/advanced methods and the expansion of their scope to include the reductions of waste/pollution. This manuscript provides background and brief overview for current and traditional concepts of FQ with consumers in focus while mentioning techniques that are traditionally used for FQ assessments. Also, it describes migration toward FQ 4.0 and how it compares with traditional FQ, while considering products, processes, systems, and sustainable (nano)technologies for improvements of manufacturing and waste reductions. Such information is useful for practical guides for stakeholders in food chain (e.g., food managers, technologists, and consultants). Findings implied importance for developing the area within the “FQ 4.0 triangle,” whose three edges are “food science,” “quality assurance,” and “industry 4.0 (that has the tools/technologies to support this industrial concept).” This area has numerous opportunities for various applications in food sector and for gathering knowledge, currently needed in the food industry. Including data on the suitability of advanced technologies for food manufacturing (e.g., 3D printing), their association with quality/safety, reduction of waste/contaminants, all in order to reach sustainable food production.

Berry fruits are highly nutritious and possess therapeutic properties, making them popular in various markets including fresh fruit, food, beauty, medical, and health. As people’s quality of life continues to improve, the demand for berry fruits is increasing. As a result, farmers must prioritize the quality of berry fruits while also increasing production. In the realm of quality control, berry fruit detection holds great significance. However, traditional detection methods are plagued with major drawbacks such as destructiveness, high cost, and a long detection time. Fortunately, nondestructive testing technology has rapidly developed due to its nondamaging, efficient, and versatile advantages. This method can complete various detection projects and meet the diverse detection requirements of orchard supervision. This paper provides a review of the use of nondestructive testing technology in various types of berry fruits and highlights the progress made in optical nondestructive testing technology for identifying these fruits, as well as detecting their external and internal quality. This article summarizes and analyzes the challenges encountered by nondestructive testing in the same field of berry fruits and explores the potential development directions of nondestructive testing technology in the field. The findings of the study can offer valuable insights and reference for the intelligent management of berry orchards and the enhancement of the berry market system.