Predictions of the shear modulus of cheese, a soft matter approach

Abstract

The rheological and structural properties of cheese govern many physical processes associated with cheese such as slumping, slicing and melting. To date there is no quantitative model that predicts shear modulus, viscosity or any other rheological property across the entire range of cheeses; only empirical fits that interpolate existing data. A lack of a comprehensive model is in part due to the many variables that can affect rheology such as salt, pH, calcium levels, protein to moisture ratio, age and temperature. By modelling the casein matrix as a series core-shell nano particles assembled from calcium and protein these variables can be reduced onto a simpler twodimensional format consisting of attraction and equivalent hard sphere volume fraction. Approximating the interaction between core-shell nano particles with a Mie potential enables numerical predictions of shear moduli. More qualitatively, this two-dimensional picture can be applied quite broadly and captures the viscoelastic behaviour of soft and hard cheeses as well as their melting phenomena.