A b s t r a c t. This paper is an investigation via two experimental methods, of the textural properties of sugar beet roots during the storage period. In the work, sugar beet roots mechanical properties were evaluated during the post-harvest period -1, 8, 22, 43, and 71 days after crop. Both experimental methods, i.e. compression test and puncture test, suggest that the failure strength of the sugar beet root increases with the storage time. The parameters obtained using the puncture test, are more sensitive to the storage duration than those obtained by way of the compression test. We also found that such mechanical properties served as a reliable tool for monitoring the progress of sugar beet roots storage. The described methods could also be used to highlight important information on sugar beet evolution during storage.

The group of semi-hard cheeses is quite heterogenous and there are distinctions between individual representatives of this group. The aim of this paper was a comparison the colour changes and texture properties of semi-hard pasta filata cheeses during ripening. Spectrophotometer Konica Minolta CM-3500d was used for the colour measurements of cheese samples. Color parameters L* a* b* were determined for the edge part and for the middle part of samples. The texture properties of cheese were measured by TIRATEST 27025. Measurements were made for part following the edge and the middle part of samples as well. During ripening of cheese samples there were observed statistically significant changes in the colour parameters of the edge part of oiled cheese. Total colour difference (ΔE * ab ) during storage was the most noticeable in first 10 days of ripening. In compare with changes in a* parameter of the edge part of cheese samples, red tone (a* parameter) in the middle part of cheese samples did not show so large change. The measured strenght of edge part of the cheese samples was in range between from 7.44 N up to 23.49 N. Firmness of middle part varied from 4.46 N to 24.40 N in 60 days of maturating.

The aim of this research was to monitor selected quality parameters of Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica)the loss of egg weight, changing yolk and white index, Haugh units, egg yolks color. Quail eggs were stored for 0, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 weeks at 4 °C. The weight of the quail eggs ranged from 11.67 to 12.27 g. The ratio of the shell range 7.60 to 8.16 % (resp. 0.89 -0.96 g), ratio of egg white from 59.33 to 62.10 % (resp. 6.31 -6.66 g) and a ratio yolk of 30.13 -32.88 % (resp. 3.68 -3.91 g). The lost of egg weight ranged from 0.47 to 2.93 % during the quail eggs storage, corresponding to a weight loss of 0.26 -0.58 g of the total weight of the eggs. The average values of the yolk index ranged from 42.67 -48.53 % and the average values of the quail egg white index ranged from 6.77 to 11.35 %. The average Haugh units were set between 56.93 and 73.72. The color of quail egg yolk was determined using the La Roche scale with the most frequent value 3. During the quail eggs storage, a statistically significant difference was found with most of the quality traits observed.

In practice, goose eggs are increasingly used and, therefore, the rheological properties have to be known for processing. The eggs of geese (Landes Goose, Anser anser f. domestica) were stored for one, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 wk at a constant temperature 4°C. First of all, the egg quality parameters were described in terms of egg weight, egg weight loss, egg shape index, yolk height, albumen height, yolk index, albumen index, and Haugh units. In the next step the rheological behavior of liquid egg products (egg yolk, albumen, and whole liquid egg) was studied using a concentric cylinder viscometer. Flow curves of all liquid egg products exhibited non-Newtonian shear thinning behavior. This behavior can be described using the Herschel-Bulkley model and for technical application using the Ostwald-de Waele model. The effect of the storage duration on the rheological behavior is different for the different liquid egg products. With the exception of very low shear rates, the viscosity of the egg yolk as well as of the whole liquid egg decreases with storage time. At lower shear rates there is a tendency toward increased albumen viscosity with storage duration. The storage duration also affects the mechanical properties of the eggshell membrane. This effect has been evaluated in terms of the ultimate tensile strength, fracture strain, and fracture toughness. All these parameters increased with the loading rate, but decreased during the egg storage. These mechanical phenomena should be respected, namely in the design of the egg model for the numerical simulation of the egg behavior under different kinds of the mechanical loading.

Infrared spectroscopy is a prominent molecular technique for bacterial analysis. Within its context, near infrared spectroscopy in particular brings benefits over other vibrational approaches; these advantages include, for example, lower sensitivity to water, high penetration depth and low cost. However, near infrared spectroscopy is not popular within microbiology, because the spectra of organic samples are difficult to interpret. We propose a comparison of spectral curve-fitting methods, namely, techniques that facilitate the interpretation of most peaks, simplify the spectra and improve the prediction of bacterial species from the relevant near infrared spectra. The performances of three common curve-fitting algorithms and the technique based on the differential evolution were compared via a synthesized experimental spectrum. Utilizing the obtained results, the spectra of three different bacterial species were curve fit by optimized algorithm. The proposed algorithm decomposed the spectra to specific absorption peaks, whose parameters were estimated via the differential evolution approach initialized through Levenberg-Marquardt optimization; subsequently, the spectra were classified with conventional procedures and using the parameters of the revealed peaks. On a limited data set, the correct classification rate computed by partial least squares discriminant analysis was 95%. When we employed the peak parameters for the classification, the rate corresponded to 91.7%. According to the Gaussian formula, the parameters comprise the spectral peak position, amplitude and width. The most important peaks for bacterial discrimination were identified by analysis of variance and interpreted as N-H stretching bonds in proteins, cis bonds and CH 2 absorption in fatty acids. We examined some aspects of the behaviour of standard curve-fitting algorithms and proposed differential evolution to optimize the fitting process. Based on the correct use of these algorithms, the near infrared spectra of bacteria can be interpreted and the full potential of near infrared spectroscopy in microbiology exploited.

Differences in the rheology and friction factor of natural food hydrocolloid gels were studied in this paper. The practical importance of the knowledge of the rheological parameters is quite evident. The experimental data were carried out using a concentric cylinder rotary viscometer. It was prepared 1% hydrocolloid solutions (hydrogels). Hydrogels of the natural gums extracted from the seeds of the plants and plant tubers have been usedcarob gum (from the seeds of Ceratonia siliqua), guar gum (from the seeds of Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) and tara gum (from the seeds of Caesalpinia spinosa). Rheological behaviour has non-Newtonian pseudoplastic character and the flow curves were fitted using the Otswaldde Waele (power law) model and Herschel -Bulkley model. The hydrogels exhibit shear thinning behaviour. The meaning of the rheological parameters on the friction factors during flow of hydrocolloid gels in the tube has been shown. Information on time dependent behaviour of tested liquids has been also obtained. Time dependent curves were fitted by the Gaussian model. Preliminary results obtained for a constant shear rate showed the thixotropic and time-dependent behaviour of the hydrogels. These parameters can be especially used in much software dealing with a numerical simulation of the flow problems.

Changes in the composition, physical and mechanical properties occur in grape berries during the ripening process, but the heterogeneity of the grapes harvested at different ripening stages affects the reliability of the results obtained. The characterization of the mechanical properties of grape berries seems to be an important parameter for understanding grape ripening. In this work, these changes were studied in seven grapevine varieties (Riesling, Blaufränkisch, Pinot Noir, Cerason, Malverina, Laurot, and Hibernal) harvested during six consecutive weeks. Mechanical behaviour was measured using compression and puncture tests using of TIRATEST 27025 testing machine. Skin mechanical properties were evaluated using a puncture test carried out on the equatorial side. The dependence of these properties on the chemical composition has been evaluated. These parameters of force/time curves were studied by puncture test: the berry skin break force, the needle displacement at the skin break and the berry skin break energy. The crushing force, the plate displacement at the crushing strength and the berry crushing energy were studied from force/time curves by compression test. Results of the puncture test shows that there the skin break strength and the acidity content are monotonic functions of the time. A comparison of different varieties from the point of the value of the crushing force was obtained by vertical and transversal loading. The crushing force is monotonically decreasing function of the harvesting time like the break force evaluated at the puncture test. The correlation between the skin break strength and the sugar content is significant namely for the varieties: Hibernal, Riesling, Malverina, and Cerason.

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