Search

Summary Degradation kinetics of total phenolic compounds, capsaicinoids and antioxidant activity in red pepper during both hot air drying and infrared drying were investigated, as well as the correlation between antioxidant compounds and antioxidant capacity was discussed in current study. The fractional conversion kinetic and first order kinetic models were proved to describe the changes of total phenolic compounds vs. drying time and moisture content, respectively. Degradation of capsaicinoids and antioxidant capacity vs. drying time and moisture content both followed fractional conversion kinetic model. Infrared drying accelerated the degradation rate of total phenolic compounds and capsaicinoids vs. drying time as compared with hot air drying at the same temperature; however, a contrary result was found that infrared drying decreased the degradation rate of both total phenolic compounds and capsaicinoids vs. moisture content. Total phenolic compounds exhibited a stronger relationship with antioxidant capacity of red pepper analysed by multiple linear regression analysis.

The ability of excipient nanoemulsions to increase the bioaccessibility of different kinds of nutraceuticals (phenolics and carotenoids) in mangoes was studied. Oil-in-water excipient nanoemulsions containing small digestible lipid nanoparticles (d200 nm) were prepared using different oil phases: medium chain triglycerides (MCT) and long-chain triglycerides (LCT). These nanoemulsions were then mixed with pureed mango and passed through a simulated gastrointestinal tract (GIT): mouth, stomach, and small intestine. Carotenoid bioaccessibility decreased in the following order: LCT nanoemulsionsMCT nanoemulsionsbuffer solution, which was attributed to differences in the solubilization capacity of the mixed micelles generated in the intestinal fluids. The digestion products of LCT formed mixed micelles with hydrophobic domains large enough to accommodate the carotenoids, whereas those of MCT did not. Excipient emulsions had much less effect on phenolic bioaccessibility, which may be because phenolics are smaller more polar molecules and are therefore more easily solubilized in aqueous intestinal fluids. These results highlight the potential of excipient nanoemulsions in boosting the bioavailability of lipophilic bioactive agents in fruits and vegetables.

Background Hot air drying and sun drying are traditional drying technologies widely used in the drying of agricultural products for a long time, but usually recognized as time-consuming or producing lower-quality products. Infrared drying is a rather effective drying technology that has advantages over traditional drying technologies. Thus, in order to investigate the application of infrared drying in the dehydration of red pepper, the drying characteristics and quality of infrared-dried red pepper were compared with those of sun-dried and hot air-dried red pepper. Results The infrared drying technology significantly enhanced the drying rate when compared with hot air drying and sun drying. Temperature was the most important factor affecting the moisture transfer during the process of infrared drying as well as hot air drying. Effective moisture diffusivity (Deff ) values of infrared drying ranged from 1.58 × 10(-9) to 3.78 × 10(-9) m(2) s(-1) . The Ea values of infrared drying and hot air drying were 42.67 and 44.48 kJ mol(-1) respectively. Infrared drying and hot air drying produced color loss to a similar extent. Relatively higher crispness values were observed for infrared-dried samples. Conclusion Sun drying produced dried red pepper with the best color when compared with hot air drying and infrared drying. Meanwhile, infrared drying markedly improved the drying rate at the same drying temperature level of hot air drying, and the products obtained had relatively better quality with higher crispness values. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

As representatives of the traditional and innovative drying method, hot-air (HA) and short- and medium-wave infrared radiation (SMIR) drying were chosen to conduct comparative study, respectively. In the present study, drying kinetics of jujube slices during HA and SMIR drying at 60, 70, 80 and 90 °C were investigated, quality attributes such as color, vitamin C (VC), total flavonoids content (TFC) and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) content of dried jujube slices were evaluated. Both HA and SMIR drying process occurred mainly in the falling rate period. Drying time used in SMIR drying was 33∼83% of that in HA drying. Logarithmic model and Two-term model were the best in describing the drying process in HA and SMIR drying, respectively. D eff values of jujube slices were varied from 1.43 × 10 −8 to 2.28 × 10 −7 m 2 /s. Values of D eff in SMIR drying were two times higher than HA drying. Jujube slices dried by SMIR revealed better color, higher retentions of VC, TFC and cAMP content than HA drying. Compared with HA drying, SMIR drying showed shorter drying time, higher drying efficiency and better quality of products, indicating SMIR drying was a more promising drying method for jujube processing.

There is lack of information about the effects of pectin and sugars on carotenoid delivery in a simple juice model system. Therefore, the effect of pectin and sugars on β-carotene bioaccessibility (CBA) and the characteristics of digestive fluids in juice model systems were studied. Carotenoid retention ratio (CRR) in the small intestine and the characteristics of digestive fluids, including color parameters and rheological properties, were investigated to gain insight into the mechanism that can alter carotenoid bioaccessibility. Results illustrated that higher pectin concentration, medium methoxyl pectin (MMP), and low methoxyl pectin (LMP) increased the initial apparent viscosity. However, there was no marked difference for the apparent viscosity of all systems in the stomach and small intestine phases. Generally, systems with sugars had higher CRR than those with pectin. Lower pectin concentration increased CBA. Systems with MMP had higher CBA than those containing high methoxyl pectin (HMP) and LMP; therefore, the effects of degree of methoxylation (DM) were not proportional to CBA. Among systems with different sugars, sucrose could achieve the highest CBA (4.59%). A comprehensive investigation of the effects of pectin and sugars on carotenoid delivery during digestion will be a theoretical guidance to improve nutritional qualities of juice products.

Peach and nectarine fruits are rich in phenolic compounds, which differ with the varieties and maturity. This study profiled the polyphenol metabolites in 7 Chinese peach and nectarine varieties at thinned and ripe stages by HPLC and UPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS. A total of 58 phenolic metabolites were identified in peach and nectarine. Neochlorogenic acid, catechin and chlorogenic acid were the dominant polyphenols in 7 varieties at both thinned and ripe stages. Regarding fruits at the thinned stage, phenolic acids were the major metabolic markers that distinguished 7 different peach and nectarine varieties, whereas flavonoids were the main metabolites differentiated the ripe fruit. Moreover, 3-p-coumaroyl quinic acid, 1-caffeoylquinic acid, myricetin, and kaempferol-3-o-rutinoside were the vital phenolic markers that differentiated thinned young fruit from the ripe one. There were significant differences in the polyphenol metabolic profile in different peach and nectarine varieties in different maturity stages. This work would provide a reference for further peach and nectarine phenolic metabolites investigation.

Hydrolysis by pectinase and pectin osmosis were applied to apple cubes before instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) drying. The water migration in the apple cubes during drying process was studied by low-field NMR. Pectin osmosis for 1 h could increase the galacturonic acid (GalA) content of the apple cubes (the maximum increase was 24%), whereas the GalA content of the apple cubes hydrolyzed by pectinase decreased (the maximum decrease was 49%). In addition, the moisture migration inside the apple cubes during drying can be hindered by osmosis treatment, but it could be accelerated by short-time pectinase hydrolysis. Besides, the hardness and crispness of apple cubes which were osmosed by pectin was higher (the maximum was 106 ± 13 N, and 53 ± 8 respectively) than that apple cubes hydrolyzed by pectinase (the maximum was 38 ± 15 N, and 2 ± 1 respectively). Simultaneously, the modification of pectin caused the non-uniform pores distribution. In addition, the different treatments had no significant correlation with the expansion ratio of the apple cubes, whereas the hardness and crispness of DIC dried apple cubes were related to the A22.

Heat pump drying (HPD) has been used as one of the promising drying methods in food industry. To understand the color improvement and shrinkage inhibition of jujube slices during HPD, water state and glass transition temperature (Tg) were determined, macroscopic state diagram was further established. Jujube slices dried by HPD presented significantly lower color difference (ΔE) and shrinkage ratio than hot air drying. The temperature difference (ΔT = T-Tg) between the material temperature (T) and Tg showed significant effect on color and shrinkage of jujube slices. As the value of ΔT reduced, the ΔE change of jujube slices decreased. Tg increased significantly with the decrease of immobilized water. With the increase of Tg, solid matrix mobility of jujube slices decreased and the shrinkage tended to be stable. Macroscopic state diagram showed that critical moisture content of jujube slices dried by HPD which glass transition would happen at 25 °C was 0.061 g/g.

Effects of juice system characteristics (pectin sources, sugar types and pH values) on β-Carotene retention and bioaccessibility were investigated in the present paper. The simulated juice system with sugar beet pectin (SBP) exhibited the highest β-Carotene bioaccessibility (CB) of 16.68% and the lowest β-Carotene retention rate (CR) of 13.18% compared to apple pectin (AP) and citrus pectin (CP) simulated juice systems during in vitro digestion. The simulated juice system with sucrose (Suc) showed the highest CB (7.30%) and the lowest CR (23.67%) among different sugars. The highest CB of 6.81% and CR of 22.99% were observed at pH 6.8 in different pH simulated juice systems. Correlation matrix results showed that certain significant correlations were found between β-Carotene delivery and pectin characteristics (P

The effect of high pressure homogenization (HPH) processing combined with juice ratio on overall quality attributes of carrot, apple and peach mixed juices were investigated. Relationships of functional properties with physicochemical and particle characteristics were analyzed, while relevance of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity (AOA) with water-soluble pectin (WSP) characteristics were also investigated. As the results indicated, juice ratio of individual juices affected physicochemical attributes, and composition of WSP and bioactive compounds in mixed juices. HPH processing decreased particle size and altered WSP characteristics. Moreover, HPH influenced functional properties of mixed juices, including cloud stability and rheological behavior, which were correlated with physicochemical and particle characteristics. Polyphenols contributed more for AOA. HPH processing enhanced polyphenol content, which showed significant positive correlations with content and degree of methylesterification of WSP. Thus, AOA was relevance to both polyphenol and WSP contents, implying that interactions between polyphenol and pectin could enhance AOA. Industrial relevance When physically and chemically different plant matrixes are mixed together to produce mixed juices, sedimentation and instability of bioactive compounds, including carotenoids and polyphenols could occur, which are identified as key challenges in the beverage industry. This research provides guidance for formulating mixed juices and introduces the potential application of high pressure homogenization for enhancing functional properties and stability of bioactive components.

The effects of instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) drying, and blanching-assisted DIC (B + DIC) on texture, volume ratio (VR), colour, microstructures of different tissues, and cell-morphology of fruit and vegetable chips was examined. Results revealed that B + DIC had a significant effect on fruits and vegetable chips as compared with DIC treated. The DIC dried mango chips were observed to have low hardness (26.12 N) and maximum crispness (10.43) that were also observed in mango chips under B + DIC treated (14.66), exhibiting a puffy structure and crispy texture. Well expanded structure which reflected by VR was found in the mango (0.46 mL) and king oyster mushroom (KOM) (0.36 mL) chips under both treatments. The maximum total colour changes (∆E) were also obtained in the mango (30.40) and carrot (42.87) chips under B + DIC. The microstructures of the apple, carrot, KOM and potato chips products, which corresponded to its well expanded appearances, showed a honeycomb-like pores structure, observed for DIC treated apple, fresh potato, B + DIC dried KOM as well as in sweet potato. In addition, the B + DIC-treated carrot chips, pores size, increased the cell wall and expanded. Moreover, the mushroom chips mostly were shrunken after hot water blanching.

To better understanding the role of cell wall pectic polysaccharides (CWPs) on the formation of textural properties of carrot chips dried by instant controlled pressure drop technology (French for Detente Instantanee Controlee, DIC), the characteristics of CWPs from ground tissue (GT), junction of ground and vascular tissue (JT), and vascular tissue (VT) of carrot were investigated. Larger expansion volume was obtained in the carrot chips derived from GT, which accompanied with superior textural qualities compared with the chips derived from JT and VT. Remarkable differences were obtained in the amount of pectic fractions, galacturonic acid content, degree of methoxylation, sugar composition and linearity of CWPs that fractionated from different tissue zones of raw carrots. The characteristics of CWPs was confirmed to be a substantial factor that significantly affected the expansion ratio and textural properties of the DIC-dried carrot chips, which providing a mechanistic insight of the relationship between variation in CWPs and the expanding behaviors of DIC-dried fruits and vegetables.

Combined effects of sodium carbonate (SC) pretreatment and hybrid drying methods (freeze drying-instant controlled pressure drop drying (FD-ICPDD), hot air drying (HAD-ICPDD) on nutritional and antioxidant properties of Goji berries were investigated. Compared with distilled water pretreatment, SC pretreatment could obtain products with better quality. Goji dried by FD-ICPDD showed better overall quality than that dried by HAD or FD alone. FD-ICPDD products exhibited higher contents of total Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (140 g/kg), total carotenoids (2.4 g/kg) as well as the strongest ABTS.+ radical scavenging activity (57.6 μmol TE/g). FD-ICPDD could be an alternative drying method for processing valuable agro-products. Keywords: sodium carbonate, instant controlled pressure drop drying, nutritional properties, antioxidant activity

An abundance of shiitake mushrooms is consumed in dried form around the world. In the present study, changes in water state, water distribution and microstructure of shiitake mushrooms during hot-air drying (HAD) and far-infrared radiation drying (FIRD) processes were investigated using low-field nuclear magnetic resonance and scanning electron microscopy. Quality attributes of the dried products were compared in terms of drying property, appearance, rehydration behavior, texture and storage stability. RESULTS Compared with HAD, the rate of water diffusion and evaporation of the shiitake mushrooms dried by FIRD was higher, thus resulting in a shorter drying time (630?min), a lower water content (0.07?g?g?1 wet basis) and a higher glass transition temperature (7.88?°C) for dried products. Moreover, a homogenous and porous microstructure with less shrinkage and case hardening was demonstrated by the FIRD samples, indicating a superior texture, including a larger pileus diameter (3.4?cm), a higher rehydration ratio (7.31), a lower hardness (37.93?N) and a higher crispness (1.41?mm) for FIRD shiitake mushrooms. CONCLUSION High-quality shiitake mushrooms with a desirable texture could be produced by FIRD by enhancing the diffusion of internal water and alleviating the case hardening during a relatively short drying process. ? 2018 Society of Chemical Industry

A grading curve is an important measure for illustrating the grain size distribution of granular materials. In general, there exists a statistical fractal relationship between the cumulativ...

Characterization of water status and water soluble pectin (WSP) from peach were evaluated after different stage of combined drying in which osmotic dehydration (OD) was considered as the pre-treatment prior to instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) - assisted infrared radiation drying (IRD) (IR-DIC). Results showed that the contents of free water and immobilized water decreased to 0 g after the combined drying. The content of bound water increased after IRD treatment. The residual PME activity in peach slices was 153.3–179.6% after OD treatment, while, the PG were totally inactivated after IRD. The degree of esterification (DE), WSP content and average molar mass (Mw) decreased significantly (from 75.00 to 43.74, from 156.00 to 74.91 mg/g AIR and from 2.28 to 0.49 × 105 Da, respectively) after the combined drying. The neutral sugar of WSP was mainly composed by galactose, arabinose and rhamnose, whose contents decreased after the combined drying. However, OD treatment would slow down the degradation. There was a low peak at 1740 cm−1 in FT-IR spectrum observed for WSP after IRD and DIC treatment, which might illustrate the degradation of WSP during the combined drying.

Combined freeze-drying and instant controlled pressure drop process (FD-DIC) for restructured carrot-potato chips was developed and its processing conditions were optimized using response surface methodology (RSM) with the purpose of improving the quality of products and reducing energy consumption. Three critical variables including the amount of carrot, the moisture content of the partially dried product before DIC treatment, and equilibrium temperature of DIC for the restructured chips were considered. Response parameters such as the final moisture content, color value (L, a, and b), and texture properties of restructured carrot-potato chips were investigated. The results showed that the graphical optimal ranges of FD-DIC drying process were as follows: the amount of carrot was 46–54% w/w, the moisture content of the partially dried product before DIC treatment was 0.20–0.35 g/g, and the equilibrium temperature of DIC was 85–95°C. Furthermore, the numerical optimization suggested that conditions were 47.43% w/w, 0.29 g/g, and 90.57°C, respectively. It could be concluded that the combined drying method of FD-DIC provided the restructured carrot-potato chips with higher quality, as compared to the freeze-dried chips. Considering the relatively high production cost of FD, this novel FD-DIC could be an alternative method for obtaining desirable restructured fruit and vegetable chips.

The impacts of hot air drying (AD), freeze drying (FD), infrared drying, microwave drying and vacuum drying as pre-drying methods for explosion puffing drying (EPD), on the qualities of pear chips were studied. The lowest total color differences were found in the FD and FD–EPD dried pear chips (ΔE 10.7 and 9.78, respectively). Substantial volume expansion (7.4%) was only observed in the FD–EPD dried chips, which was in line with its expanded porous microstructures. The FD–EPD dried pear chips exhibited a relatively low hardness (26.1 N) and the highest crispness (36.5), indicating a crispier texture. The FD–EPD dried pear chips showed the second fastest rehydration rate. Sensory analysis suggested that, compared with conventional AD pre-drying, FD pre-drying dramatically improved the overall quality of pear chips. In conclusion, FD–EPD could be used as a competitive drying method for obtaining high-quality fruit chips or processing valuable material. Practical Applications Fruit chips, as a healthy snack, have become increasingly popular in the diet of modern consumers. Among many fruit chip production technologies, explosion puffing drying (EPD) is an efficient technology with unique advantages on super crispy texture. Generally, prior to EPD drying, hot air drying (AD) is used as a pre-dying treatment for reducing the moisture content of a raw material. However, severe shrinkage, nutritional degradation and color deterioration often occur during AD pre-drying stage. The research for answers to this technological challenge was the motivation of this study, which evaluated the impact of different pre-drying process on qualities of pear chips. The data shown would provide scientific rationales for obtaining high-quality fruit chips or processing valuable material.

Jackfruit chips are very popular in South Asia; however, the quality of traditional hot air-dried jackfruit chips is not desirable due to brown color and high hardness. The effects of three drying methods, instant controlled pressure drop-assisted freeze drying (FD-DIC), instant controlled pressure drop-assisted hot air drying (AD-DIC), and freeze drying (FD), on the physicochemical characteristics, color, antioxidant activity, expansion ratio, texture, rehydration, hygroscopicity, and microstructure of jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus L.) chips were investigated. The FD-DIC-dried jackfruit chips showed the highest expansion ratio (119 %), the best color (△E, 6.5) and texture (hardness 42 N, crispness 19) compared with the FD- and AD-DIC-dried samples. A substantial increase in pore size was observed in the microstructure of the FD-DIC-dried chips. Compared with AD-DIC, the FD-DIC-finished jackfruit chips exhibited stronger antioxidant capacities (DPPH· free radical scavenging activity, ferric reducing power, and ABTS·+ radical cation scavenging activity) and higher retention of phenolics (1.2 mg GAE g−1) and carotenoids (3.1 μg CE g−1). In conclusion, the jackfruit chips produced by FD-DIC obtained a superior overall quality than the AD-DIC- and FD-dried samples. Considering the relatively high production cost of FD, this novel combination (FD-DIC) could be an alternative method for obtaining high-quality fruit chips or processing valuable agro-products.

Many phytochemicals from fruits and vegetables exert biological activities that may be beneficial to human health, but these benefits are not fully realized because of their poor oral bioavailability. The objective of this research was to establish the potential of excipient emulsions to increase carotenoid bioaccessibility from raw and cooked yellow peppers using a gastrointestinal model that included oral, gastric, and intestine phases. The influence of oil type (medium chain triglycerides, MCT; long chain triglycerides, LCT; and, indigestible orange oil, OO) on microstructural changes, particle properties, lipid digestibility, and carotenoid bioaccessibility was investigated. Oil type had a major impact, with carotenoid bioaccessibility decreasing in the following order: LCTMCTOOcontrol (no oil). Conversely, thermal treatment (raw versus boiled) had little influence on carotenoid bioaccessibility. These results will facilitate the rational design of excipient emulsions that boost the bioavailability of phytochemicals in fruits and vegetables.

The impact of number of puffing times during explosion puffing drying (EPD) on drying characteristics and qualities of apple chips was studied. Physicochemical characteristics, antioxidant capacity, color, texture, expansion ratio, rehydration ratio, hydroscopicity, and microstructure of apple chips dried by EPD with 0 (vacuum drying, VD), 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 puffing times were analyzed. The apple chips dried by EPD with 3 and 5 puffing times exhibited better color (ΔE 7.27–7.70) and texture (hardness 40.5–40.8 N, crispness 8.8–9.3 N/mm), as well as higher expansion ratio (104.4–109.7%) compared to VD and EPD with fewer or more puffing times. The samples dried with 3 and 5 puffing times also showed relatively higher rehydration ratio and hygroscopicity, and acceptable retention of total phenolic content (0.32–0.37 mg/g) and ascorbic acid content (1.66–1.89 mg/100 g), as well as considerable antioxidant abilities (DPPH 79.45–81.17 AEAC µM/g, FRAP 66.54–68.25 TEAC µM/g, ABTS 73.36–79.21 TEAC µM/g) com...

BACKGROUND Dehydration has been considered as one of the traditional but most effective techniques for perishable fruits. Raspberry powders obtained after dehydration can be added as ingredients into food formulations such as bakery and dairy products. In this study, raspberry powders obtained by hot air drying (HAD), infrared radiation drying (IRD), hot air and explosion puffing drying (HA-EPD), infrared radiation and microwave vacuum drying (IR-MVD) and freeze drying (FD) were compared on physical properties, bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity. RESULTS Drying techniques affected the physical properties, bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of raspberry powders greatly. FD led to significantly higher (P < 0.05) values of water solubility (45.26%), soluble solid (63.46%), hygroscopicity (18.06%), color parameters and anthocyanin retention (60.70%) of raspberry powder compared with other drying methods. However, thermal drying techniques, especially combined drying methods, were superior to FD in final total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity. The combined drying methods, especially IR-MVD, showed the highest total polyphenol content (123.22 g GAE kg−1 dw) and total flavonoid content (0.30 g CAE kg−1 dw). Additionally, IR-MVD performed better in antioxidant activity retention. CONCLUSION Overall, combined drying methods, especially IR-MVD, were found to result in better quality of raspberry powders among the thermal drying techniques. IR-MVD could be recommended for use in the drying industry because of its advantages in time saving and nutrient retention. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry

In the present paper, explosion puffing drying kinetics of sliced apples affected by four different pretreatments, including freezing, maltose syrup, calcium chloride and standard pasteurized milk immersion at atmospheric pressure were investigated. Four thin-layer drying models were applied to describe the drying kinetics. The results indicated that a parabolic model was the best model to characterize the drying kinetics of apple slices. The average values of determination coefficient (r2) varied between 0.9803 and 0.9933. The parabolic model had the lowest root mean square error (RMSE), mean bias error (MBE) and chi-square (χ2), the highest modeling efficiency and regression coincident. The values of effective moisture diffusivity were ranged from 154.0650 × 10−12m2 s−1 to 397.6886 × 10−12m2s−1. Freezing pretreatment had the highest effective moisture diffusivity value and maltose syrup immersion treatment exhibited the lowest one.

In this study, sixteen evaluation indicators of explosion puffing Fuji apple chips from nine different origins in China were analyzed, and the most important evaluation indicators were obtained by analysis of variance (ANOVA), correlation analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA) and system cluster analysis (SCA). Results of ANOVA showed that quality of apple chips from different origins showed significant differences (P

Atorvastatin (ATST), a drug commonly used to reduce the levels of cholesterol and low-density lipoproteins, is a prospective agent for the prevention of colorectal cancer in patients with hyperlipidemia. ATST in combination with functional components is a promising strategy for cancer chemoprevention. In the present study, the growth inhibitory effect of ATST combined with phloretin (PT) on SW620 and HCT116 colon cancer cells was investigated. The results of MTT assays indicated that the combination of PT and ATST markedly reduced cell survival in both cell lines compared with PT or ATST treatment administered individually. The interaction indexes between PT and ATST, which were used to analyze their interaction pattern, were computed by the median-effect equation. The interaction indexes of each PT and ATST concentration pair were

In this paper, short- and medium-wave infrared radiation (SMIR) drying characteristics of kiwifruit slices with/without osmotic dehydration (OD) were investigated. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) was selected as the best osmotic solution and coupled with SMIR. Both infrared drying processes with/without OD occurred mainly in the falling rate period. Results indicated that the Logarithmic model and Page model were best in predicting moisture transfer for the kiwifruit slices with and without OD, respectively. The values of effective diffusivity ranged from 4.10×10‒10 m2/s to 9.52×10‒9 m2/s and from 3.10×10‒10 m2/s to 1.16×10‒8 m2/s for kiwifruit slices with and without OD, respectively. During the overall falling rate period, the activation energy value was 29.51 kJ/mol and 27.44 kJ/mol for the osmosed and non-osmosed kiwifruit slices, respectively. As compared with non-OD, OD pre-treatment could improve the drying characteristics, decrease color change and increase the retention ratios of ascorbic acid and chlorophyll.

The effect of osmotic dehydration (OD) and ultrasound-assisted osmotic dehydration (ULOD) on drying kinetics and quality of peach cylinders by infrared radiation drying were investigated. The moisture state and redistribution after osmotic pretreatments and subsequent drying process were also studied by low field nuclear magnetic resonance. The water loss and solute gain increased with osmotic time, and ULOD could promote water transfer. The signal amplitude of free water and immobile water diminished and shifted to the left for samples pretreated by both ULOD and OD. The brightness in T2-weighted images appeared a declining trend with increasing osmotic time of ULOD and OD, indicating the moisture content reduced gradually. During dying process, the free water of all samples was removed completely after drying for 120 min. ULOD and OD could increase water activity and decrease shrinkage of samples. Long pretreatment of ULOD and OD improved the color of dried peach cylinders.

Effects of two combination drying methods as well as two single drying methods on the quality of papaya chips were studied. The longest drying time was found in freeze drying (FD), while the shortest drying time was found in hot-air-explosion puffing drying (HA-EPD). The papaya chips dried by FD exhibited the lowest shrinkage, while the highest shrinkage was found in the hot-air drying (HAD) dried sample. The lowest and highest total color differences (△E) were found in the FD and FD-EPD. The FD dehydrated papaya chips showed the highest retention of ascorbic acid and total carotenoids. The fastest rehydration rate was also observed in samples dried by FD. The worst rehydration capacity was found in FD-EPD, which related to the collapsed porous microstructure. Papaya chips prepared by FD-EPD showed crispier texture, which were in line with their expanded porous microstructures. In conclusion, the application of combining with EPD may improve the retention of nutrition of papaya.

To establish the most convenient and effective method to dry tangerine peels, different methods (sun drying, hot-air drying, freeze drying, vacuum drying, and medium- and short-wave infrared drying) were exploited. Our results indicated that medium- and short-wave infrared drying was the best method to preserve nutraceutical components; for example, vitamin C was raised to 6.77 mg/g (D.W.) from 3.39 mg/g (sun drying). Moreover, the drying time can be shortened above 96% compared with sun drying. Importantly, the efficiency of DPPH radical scavenging was enhanced from 26.66% to 55.92%. These findings would provide a reliable and time-saving methodology to produce high-quality dried tangerine peels.

In this study, response surface methodology was used to optimize parameters of short- and medium-wave infrared drying processing for producing jujube powder. Optimization factors were power input (675–1,575 W), drying temperature (70–90 °C) and drying time (2.5–3.5 h), and responses were moisture content, L value, b value and vitamin C content of the jujube powder. Box–Benhnken center design was applied to the optimized the processing conditions. The optimal conditions for the production of jujube powder by the short- and medium-wave infrared drying method were power input of 1,125 W, drying temperature at 85.4 °C and drying time for 3.5 h. Under the optimal conditions, the values of moisture content, L, b and vitamin C content of jujube powder were 4.59 %, 64.46, 19.87 and 441.56 mg/100 g, respectively. Quality evaluation of the jujube powder was also investigated. The results were: hygroscopicity of 28.83 %, rehydration of 236.44 %, solubility of 53.59 %, bulk density of 0.70 g/ml, particle size of 154.2 μm, soluble solids content of 82.29 %, total sugar content of 46.87 %, reducing sugar content of 32.09 %, total acid content of 2.03 %, total flavonoids content of 1.45 % and cyclic adenosine monophosphate content of 75.32 mg/kg. The microstructure of jujube powder was irregular and 38 kinds of aroma components were generated.

This study describes a way to realistically model the internal erosion after of damage in the concrete face of a concrete face rockfill dam (CFRD). The study uses a 2D plane strain model of Tianshengqiao dam's geometry as an example, with and without consideration to erosion of the underlying cushion and transition layers. In order to accomplish this, Mazars' concrete damage model, which is a continuum damage model, was coupled with permeability relationships on the face slab; and poroelastic model was used in conjunction with Sterpi's erosion model for the underlying cushion and transition layers. Two scenarios were studied: without considering erosion and considering erosion. Results reveal that when the reservoir is linearly impounded damage in the face slab is concentrated to the lower quarter of the slab, and internal erosion will occur at the toe of the dam. After more fine particles are lost, the mechanical and hydraulic properties of the dam will change and the dam safety can be compromised.

Physical and chemical characterization of 6 apple varieties (Early Golden Delicious, Jonagold, Hanfu, Ralls, Rainier and Fuji) from China was performed using pattern recognition tools. Measurements were taken on 12 parameters including weigh, colour, fruit firmness, crude fiber, total soluble solids, titration acid, water, Vitamin C, edible rate and juice yield .The results showed that physical and chemical properties existed different variance in apple varieties. The coefficient of variance of 12 properties was from 2.15% to 69.04%. The different apple varieties were investigated by principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). PCA revealed that the first four components represented 95.13% of the total variability in properties and different apple groups. HCA classified samples into three groups on the basis of the physical and chemical properties.

Optimum technology of spray-dried jujube powder was studied using a Box-Benhnken design. Effects of weight ratio of maltodextrin and the dry matter weight of jujube pulp (WR, 3–5), inlet air temperature (T, 140–160 °C), and shift of feed flow rate (FFR, 3–5) on the quality attributes (moisture content, lightness, the total color difference, vitamin C (VC) content and hygroscopicity) of jujube powder were systematically studied by response surface methodology and perturbation plot. Analysis of variance showed that a second-order polynomial equation could predict the experimental data well (R 2 > 0.92). Moisture content and the total color difference (∆E) were significantly affected by WR, T, and FFR. The higher WR and lower FFR resulted in a decrease in moisture content and ∆E. WR and FFR had extremely significant effects on VC content and hygroscopicity (P

Computer vision-based image analysis systems are widely used in food processing to evaluate quality changes. They are able to objectively measure the surface colour of various products since, providing some obvious advantages with their objectivity and quantitative capabilities. In this study, a computer vision-based image analysis system was used to investigate the colour changes of apple slices dried by instant controlled pressure drop-assisted hot air drying (AD-DIC).The CIE L* value and polyphenol oxidase activity in apple slices decreased during the entire drying process, whereas other colour indexes, including CIE a*, b*, ΔE and C* values, increased. The browning ratio calculated by image analysis increased during the drying process, and a sharp increment was observed for the DIC process. The change in 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) and fluorescent compounds (FIC) showed the same trend with browning ratio due to Maillard reaction. Moreover, the concentrations of 5-HMF and FIC both had a good quadratic correlation (RBrowning ratio was a reliable indicator of 5-HMF and FIC changes in apple slices during drying. The image analysis system could be used to monitor colour changes, 5-HMF and FIC in dehydrated apple slices during the AD-DIC process. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Based on the deep excavation engineering which used the common support design near the range of Suzhou Rail Transit Line 2, a 3-D numerical model was created to make the numerical simulation analysis of the deep foundation pit construction and obtain the comprehensive evaluation of the influence on the nearby subway tunnel stress and deformation when the 3 # and 4 # block foundation pits were excavated. The numerical results show that: when the pits are excavated to the basement, the total displacement value of the tunnel is 1.6mm. Because of the aspect ratio difference between the 3# and 4# block pits, the subway tunnel displacement of every direction trends to the 3# block. And the preserving soil area between the two blocks makes the tunnel stress present a symmetric distribution along the soil area's cross section. The surface settlements of soil behind enclosure structure lead to a great impact on the pipelines, whose maximum reaches 5mm. For comprehensive, the maximum displacement and spring back deformation of the subway tunnel meet the control requirements, with a certain margin of safety.

The effects of hot air drying (AD), freeze drying (FD), infrared drying (IR), microwave drying (MV), vacuum drying (VD) as pre-drying treatments for explosion puff drying (EPD) on qualities of jackfruit chips were studied. The lowest total color differences (∆E) were found in the FD-, MV- and VD-EPD dried chips. Volume expansion effect (9.2 %) was only observed in the FD-EPD dried chips, which corresponded to its well expanded honeycomb microstructures and high rehydration rate. Compared with AD-, IR-, MV- and VD-EPD, the FD-EPD dried fruit chips exhibited lower hardness and higher crispness, indicative of a crispier texture. FD-EPD dried fruits also obtained high retentions of ascorbic acid, phenolics and carotenoids compared with that of the other puffed products. The results of sensory evaluation suggested that the FD-EPD was a more beneficial combination because it enhanced the overall qualities of jackfruit chips. In conclusion, the FD-EPD could be used as a novel combination drying method for processing valuable and/or high quality fruit chips.

Nineteen evaluation indicators in 15 yellow peach chips prepared by explosion puffing drying were analyzed, including color, rehydration ratio, texture, and so on. The analysis methods of principle component analysis (PCA), analytic hierarchy process (AHP), K-means cluster (KC) and Discriminate analysis (DA) were used to analyze the comprehensive quality of the yellow peach chips. The dispersed coefficient of variation of the 19 evaluation indicators varied from 3.58 to 852.89 %, suggesting significant differences among yellow peach cultivars. The characteristic evaluation indicators, namely, reducing sugar content, out-put ratio, water content, a value and L value were analyzed by PCA, and their weights 0.0429, 0.1140, 0.4816, 1.1807 and 0.1807 were obtained by AHP. The levels in 15 cultivars effectively were classified by discrimination functions which obtained by KC and DA. The results suggested that three levels of comprehensive quality for yellow peach chips were divided, and the highest synthesis scores was observed in “senggelin” (11.1037), while the lowest synthesis value was found in “goldbaby” (−3.7600).

Polymethoxyflavones (PMFs) have been known as a type of bioactive flavones that possess various beneficial biological functions. Accumulating evidence demonstrated that the metabolites of PMFs, that is, hydroxyl PMFs (OH-PMFs), had more potent beneficial biological effects than their corresponding parent PMFs. To facilitate the further identification and quantification of OH-PMFs in biological samples, the aim of this study was to develop a methodology for the simultaneous determination of 10 OH-PMFs using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with electrochemistry detection. The HPLC profiles of these 10 OH-PMFs affected by different chromatographic parameters (different organic composition in mobile phases, the concentration of trifluoroacetic acid, and the concentration of ammonium acetate) are fully discussed in this study. The optimal condition was selected for the following validation studies. The linearity of calibration curves, accuracy, and precision (intra- and interday) at three concentration levels (low, middle, and high concentration range) were verified. The regression equations were linear (r > 0.9992) over the range of 0.005-10 μM. The limit of detection for 10 OH-PMFs was in the range of 0.8-3.7 ng/mL (S/N = 3, 10 μL injection). The recovery rates ranged from 86.6 to 108.7%. The precisions of intraday and interday analyses were less than 7.37 and 8.63% for relative standard deviation, respectively. This validated method was applied for the analysis of a variety of samples containing OH-PMFs. This paper also gives an example of analyzing the metabolites of nobiletin in mouse urine using the developed method. The transformation from nobiletin to traces of 5-hydroxyl metabolites has been discovered by this effective method, and this is the first paper to report such an association.

Dehydration has been considered as one of the traditional but most effective techniques for perishable fruits. Raspberry powders obtained after dehydration can be added as ingredients into food formulations such as bakery and dairy products. In this study, raspberry powders obtained by hot air drying (HAD), infrared radiation drying (IRD), hot air and explosion puffing drying (HA-EPD), infrared radiation and microwave vacuum drying (IR-MVD) and freeze drying (FD) were compared on physical properties, bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity.Drying techniques affected the physical properties, bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity of raspberry powders greatly. FD led to significantly higher (P0.05) values of water solubility (45.26%), soluble solid (63.46%), hygroscopicity (18.06%), color parameters and anthocyanin retention (60.70%) of raspberry powder compared with other drying methods. However, thermal drying techniques, especially combined drying methods, were superior to FD in final total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity. The combined drying methods, especially IR-MVD, showed the highest total polyphenol content (123.22 g GAE kg(-1) dw) and total flavonoid content (0.30 g CAE kg(-1) dw). Additionally, IR-MVD performed better in antioxidant activity retention.Overall, combined drying methods, especially IR-MVD, were found to result in better quality of raspberry powders among the thermal drying techniques. IR-MVD could be recommended for use in the drying industry because of its advantages in time saving and nutrient retention.

Moisture equilibration process (MEP) is an important process before controlled pressure drop (DIC) drying to obtain greater products quality and avoid producing bubbles. The aim of this work was to study the effect of MEP on the quality of apple chips dried by instant controlled pressure drop-assisted hot air drying (DIC-AD). After predrying by AD, four types of moisture equilibration solutions were applied to equilibrate the moisture of apple chips before DIC. The quality of apple chips equilibrated in water for 10 min was superior to those for 30 and 60 min with better color, brittleness, hardness, puffing degree (PD), and microstructure. Sugar solutions showed positive effect on brittleness and hardness, PD, and soluble solids of apple chips. In addition, calcium chloride was beneficial to the color of apple chips, and the product showed good rehydration and PD possibly due to the reaction between pectin and calcium ions. Practical applications Instant controlled pressure drop (DIC) was a new sort of united drying method that can combine with other drying technology, such as hot air drying and freezing drying. In practical production, apple slices are usually dried to low moisture content for long time storage and regained appropriate moisture content before drying. After predrying, moisture equilibration process (MEP) is an important process before DIC drying which made water homogenous distributed in the sample to obtain greater products quality and avoid producing bubbles during DIC drying. In this study, MEP with different solutions including water, fructose syrup, maltitol, and calcium chloride were performed before DIC drying, and the changes of physiochemical properties of dried products were studied. Based on the analysis of experimental results, predried apple slice equilibrated in water for 10 min, 10% fructose syrup and 30% maltitol solution might produce apple chips with better quality.

To further improve the quality of traditional combined hot air and explosion puffing drying (AD-EPD) dehydrated tropical fruit, freeze drying, as a pre-drying treatment, combined with explosion puffing drying (FD-EPD) was applied to dry mango, pitaya, and papaya fruit. Comparative study of AD-EPD and FD-EPD in terms of physicochemical, texture, color, microstructure, and rehydration properties of the three tropical fruit chips was done. Compared with AD-EPD, the crispness and the volume ration of the three tropical fruits were significantly improved when EPD coupled with FD. The lowest color difference, as well as high retention of physicochemical characteristics was found in FD-EPD prepared chips. The improvements of texture and color in FD-EPD dried fruit chips were confirmed using a 15-member sensory evaluation. In terms of integrated quality of the three tropical fruit chips, FD-EPD could be further applied to process valuable materials. Practical applications Drying has been applied to extend the shelf-life of seasonable fruit. With the development of drying industry, more and more advanced drying technologies are required. Explosion puffing drying (EPD) is a novel drying technology, which has many advantages, such as improving product's quality, increasing the drying rate and reducing the cost. Freeze drying (FD), as one of the innovative drying methods can be applied to combine with EPD (FD-EPD) to dry tropical fruit (mango, pitaya, and papaya). The tropical fruit chips dried by FD-EPD are presented integrated quality. Overall, FD-EPD will be a promising drying technology for preparing tropical fruit chips.

Comparative study of drying characteristic, moisture diffusivity, and quality attributes of blanched carrot slices (BCS) dried by hot-air and short- and medium-wave infrared radiation (SMIR) were investigated. SMIR drying could shorten drying time by 78–84% as compared to the hot-air process at the same temperature. In both drying methods, drying occurred mainly in the falling rate period, and the Page model was the best in describing the drying processes BCS. Effective moisture diffusivity (Deff) was significantly affected by drying methods, values of Deff in SMIR drying were 4–5 times higher than that of hot-air drying. The activation energy values of BCS were 28.64 and 22.30 kJ.mol−1 for hot-air and SMIR drying, respectively. Compared with hot-air drying, BCS dried by SMIR gave better color, higher rehydration ratio, and greater β-carotene retention. Comparison results indicated SMIR drying was a more promising drying method than hot-air drying. Practical applications Short- and medium- wave infrared radiation (SMIR) drying, with wavelength in the range of 76–4 μm, is an emerging drying technology which has many advantages, such as maintaining product quality, increasing the drying rate. As representatives of the traditional and innovative drying method, hot-air and SMIR drying were chosen to conduct comparative study. Results showed that blanched carrot slices dried by SMIR showed higher drying efficiency, better integrated quality than hot-air drying. This study provided the reference that SMIR drying could be a promising drying methods for agro-products.

This study was conducted to evaluate moisture transfer and changes of thiosulfinates, total phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity of garlic slices during infrared drying at temperatures from 50 to 80C and powers from 675 to 2,025 W. Drying time was significantly shortened with increasing infrared drying temperature. Thiosulfinates showed no significant changes versus moisture content during the whole drying period at 50, 60 and 70C, while a notable degradation of thiosulfinates was observed at 80C. Total phenolic compounds in garlic slices all rapidly decreased versus moisture content initially at all investigated drying conditions. Whereas the total phenolic compounds in dried garlic slices significantly enhanced with drying temperature from 50 to 80C at 1,575 W. Antioxidant activity increased during infrared drying, which was contradictory with the changes of total phenolic compounds and thiosulfinates. Pratical Applications This work are useful for the processing of garlic slices by infrared drying to obtain the optimum benefits of bioactive compounds present in this food product during drying. Infrared drying is reported as a promising method on foodstuff processing, which impinges on the material, penetrates it, and converts the infrared energy into heat. Therefore, it is more energy saving as well as reduce drying time. In this study, drying time was significantly shortened with increasing infrared drying temperature. A remarkable decrease of total phenolic compounds versus moisture content was observed during infrared drying. Meanwhile, thiosulfinates of garlic showed fluctuation over the moisture content decreased, except a notable degradation of thiosulfinates was observed at 80C. Conflicting results were found in antioxidant activity that a clear increasing trend with decreasing moisture content during infrared drying process.

This article studies the relationship between CEO duality and corporate performance based on different ownership concentration. We divide the sample by cluster analysis into two subgroups, the high ownership concentration level subgroup and low ownership concentration level subgroup. After that, principal component analysis is employed to calculate the performance index based on an evaluation system which includes multiple dimensions and multiple indicators of firm performance. Finally, we conduct the regress analysis with the two subgroups to examine the relationship between duality and performance index on high and low degree of ownership concentration. The analysis of full sample indicates that there is no significant correlation between CEO duality status and performance. But duality has a positive effect on firm performance in the high degree of ownership concentration subgroup. There is no significant difference between corporations which set up board chairman and CEO in different way. This still doesn't not change the fact in high and low degree of ownership concentration.

Taking turnover of top management team in Chinese listed corporations as the sample, this study examines the internal relationship between the characteristics of board of directors and the effectiveness of China's corporate governance with the related corporation management and financial data from 2004 to 2009. The empirical results show that: (1) The company performance of the previous year has an influence on the Turnover of Top Management, which shows the effectiveness of corporate governance in Chinese listed corporations. (2) With the further reform of corporate governance, the leadership structure of board of directors is intensely normative in Chinese listed corporations and the separation of CEO and board chairman can increase the probability of the turnover of top management. (3) Not all of the characteristics of board of directors have a direct relationship with the effectiveness of China's corporate governance, among which, the frequency of board meeting and the separation condition of CEO and board chairman do show a significant correlation with that effectiveness.