Introduction
Population outburst over a few decades has resulted in growth food processing extensively, drift in food processing keeps on changing its course progressively in order to meet impulsive need of ever-growing global population. Green technology in food processing is one among most promising technological approach which aims at enhancing environmentally friendly technologies for food processing, one such green technology includes Ultrasonication which is considered as effective green technology in food science and technological stream.
In present context nominal processing techniques in food industry is devised in order to preserve nutritional and bio accessibility features of processed foods, Ultrasound treatment method is one among efficient techniques that cut down processing losses, enhance food standards, and safeguard the safety of products. This technology has prospects for numerous utilization factors in various food processing sectors, the most typical applications in processing sector is as an auxiliary for solid-liquid extraction by varying strength of frequency, ultrasound is used for activating or deactivating complex protein, blending, homogenization, dissipation, preservation, crystallization, tenderization of meat. Ultrasonic methods are becoming increasingly popular in food processing industry, to surveil products, and non-destructive supervision of processes is omnipresent application in food industry.
Mechanism of Action
Ultrasound is composed of mechanical sonic waves originating from Brownian movement due oscillations in a propagating medium. These waves have frequency about 20-24 kilohertz. The lowest ultrasound frequency used for processing is 20 kHz and for gases it’s about 5MHz and 500MHz for liquids.
Ultrasonic implementation in processing involve use of frequencies ranging about 2-10 kHz. Mechanical and chemical impacts of waves generating due to ultrasound of given range are capable of altering material properties because high pressure build up, shearing action, and temperature difference in medium of propagation. Application of ultrasound to liquid complexes causes acoustic cavitations which is the phenomenon of generation, growing and rupture of bubbles in the liquid complexes. As ultrasound waves propagate, the bubbles oscillate and rupture which causes the mechanical, and chemical effects, Food process applications usually have less power but high frequency
Ultrasonic Processing
Applications of ultrasound at high intensities bring about changes in mechanical and chemical properties of food materials because it’s a pure physical approach, providing an alternative to thermal processing of food.
Ultrasound in present period is employed for production control process, evaluate properties of food components, identify shortcomings in the prevailing processing method, boost up yield quantity and pace of extraction of food components. Ultrasound is employed to improve traditional food process operations thereby reducing energy and chemical demands, hence providing a better option. In food processing, ultrasound applications are further segregated into two, firstly alternative to conventional technologies and secondly aided ultrasound technologies.
Various groups of organic compounds, organic substances are productively extracted from diverse complexes by employing Ultrasound. Ultrasound assisted extraction is an economically feasible alternative to traditional techniques for food products. High-intensity ultrasound influences the crystallization process particularly nucleation by means of controlling the small crystal formation. Filtration of various undesirable substances brought about by vibration induced by ultrasound allowing the particles to prevail in suspended state, thereby permitting exterior of the filters to release and easing the movement of solvent molecules through the pores. Ultrasonic waves at a low-frequency is employed to split a particular emulsion into liquid and oil phase components. US assist in processes such as homogenising of liquids, extraction of cellular complexes, deactivation and activation of protein complexes and drying,
Conclusion
Ultrasound principle is utilized for analysis of quality parameters of foods products, including meat, fish, vegetables, and dairy products non-destructively. The evaluation of food properties is performed by varying speed and intensity of sound waves; the Ultrasound detectors are employed for quantification of sugar content particularly present in fruit extracts or juices.
Sonication technique is also employed in meat processing sectors also, this is employed for tenderization of meat by liberating out the fibrillary proteins present in the muscular cells, and also employed for meat trimming operations.
Thus application of sonication principle in food processing is proven to be advantageous over the years and it is proven to be novel green technology in the present context, further extensive development in this technology can turn the phase of food processing.
