Fractional conversion for determining texture degradation kinetics of vegetables

Abstract

Fractional conversion (f) takes into account the nonzero texture property upon prolonged heating. This was applied as an alternate technique for reanalyzing texture degradation kinetics based on published data which indicated that the softening of vegetables followed a dual mechanism first order kinetic model. The plot of the logarithm of l-f vs heating time was linear through log cycles indicating the reaction was first order with a single rate constant and the substrate b was better characterized by the equilibrium (or maximum retainable) texture property. A possible explanation was developed for negative activation energies which had been reported for the second mechanism with some vegetables.