Application of High-Power Ultrasound in the Food Industry
Leire Astráin-Redín, Salomé Ciudad-Hidalgo, Javier Raso, S. Condón, Guillermo Cebrián, Ignacio Ãlvarez
Abstract
The purpose of this chapter is to summarize potential applications of the high-power ultrasound technology (5 W/cm2; 20–100 kHz) in the food industry. Those applications are mainly related to the improvement in mass and energy transfer in different processes when ultrasound is applied in water or through air, e.g., reduction in dehydration; thawing and freezing times and energy costs of plant-, meat-, or fish-based products; increase the extraction yields of intracellular compounds with biological activity; reduction of chemical health risks such as cadmium or acrylamide; etc. The influence of some physical parameters like temperature and pressure in cavitation intensity and the potential of this technology to even inactivate microorganisms in food products and surfaces in contact with food will be discussed. Several examples of these applications will be presented, with reference to some of the industrial or pilot plant systems available in the market to be implemented in the food industry.