Optimal boundary control of a contact thawing process for foodstuff

Backi, Christoph Josef; Leth, John; Gravdahl, Jan Tommy

doi:10.1016/j.ifacol.2016.07.243

Cited by 6 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Better controllability is achievable due to the fact that heat transfer in plate freezers and, by implication, also in plate thawers, are well understood (Backi et al, ). Backi et al () present a theoretical study on applying advanced feedback control methods, in particular Model Predictive Control, to a contact thawing process for optimal operation. However, the problem of unpacking and loading a plate thawer remains present as this is believed to be quite time‐consuming.…”

Section: Methods Acting Through the Boundarymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To the author's best knowledge, no scientific studies exist concerning the investigation of optimized operation of contact thawers, for example. The author believes that this method enables better control and monitoring of the thawing process due to the fact that already established results from plate freezer technology can be incorporated (Backi, Leth, & Gravdahl, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Methods for (industrial) thawing of fish blocks: A review

Backi

2017

J Food Process Engineering

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The food processing industry is facing challenges when it comes to the thawing of fish and fish products. These challenges include most importantly the quality of the product to be thawed, the profitability of the operation and to some minor degree the environmental impact of the whole operation. Without doubt, thawing (and freezing) has a large impact on the structure and other quality factors of fish. In addition, both serve as bottlenecks in the production chain with direct effects on the profitability and hence also on the environment, for example, if the thawing process takes longer than necessary, energy is wasted and the quality of the product might suffer. In this concise review, several methods for (industrial) thawing of fish are presented and discussed, mainly with respect to their technical specifications and functional principles. These methods can be divided into two main principal types, namely the ones that provide heat to the frozen fish only via its boundary layers, and the ones that generate heat also in the frozen fish's inner spatial domain. Both types come with advantages and disadvantages; however, the latter types are generally not (yet) suitable for industrial large‐scale operation. The theory, functional principles and advantages/disadvantages will be highlighted in this work. In addition, an outlook on future developments as well as proposals for further research will be provided. Practical applications Thawing of fish is a very important step in the production chain from catch to salable product. Freezing serves both as shelf‐life extension for large catches and as a possibility to dampen out seasonal fluctuations of different species to make them available all year round. However, a frozen headed and gutted fish cannot be processed further (e.g., filleted), it has to be thawed to perform further processing of the product.

show abstract

Section: Methods Acting Through the Boundarymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Methods for (industrial) thawing of fish blocks: A review

Backi

2017

J Food Process Engineering

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, the quality of the product is closely related to the freezing and thawing conditions, and the choice of method for thawing has the potential to affect the quality of the fish, as chemical reactions and muscle degradation may escalate . There are many potential methods for thawing fish, and methods applicable at an industrial scale were recently reviewed by Backi …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparative study of quality and safety of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) fillets during cold storage, as affected by different thawing methods of pre‐rigor frozen headed and gutted fish

Roiha¹,

Jónsson

Backi

et al. 2017

J Sci Food Agric

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BACKGROUNDThe catch of marine whitefish is typically seasonal, whereas the land‐based processing industry has a need for all‐year stable supply of raw materials. This challenge can be met by applying fish frozen at sea. When using frozen fish, the methods employed for thawing may influence the safety and quality of the final product. This study aimed to investigate the applicability of novel thawing strategies in order to provide an all‐year supply of high‐quality and safe cod products.RESULTSComparative investigations of quality and safety factors after thawing in water, with and without air circulation, and contact thawing were performed. The parameters included water‐holding capacity, thawing loss, drip loss, cooking yield, sensory evaluation and microbiological analyses (including total volatile bases nitrogen). Water thawing with air circulation provided faster thawing than water thawing without air circulation and contact thawing. For all three methods, the quality of the thawed fish was acceptable and the shelf life of the fillets during chilled storage was between 10 and 14 days post‐filleting.CONCLUSIONThe results show that controlled freezing of cod, followed by appropriate thawing, may provide the processing industry with an all‐year delivery of raw materials, without compromising quality and safety of the final product. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

show abstract