DECONTAMINATION AND SENSORY PROPERTIES OF MICROBIOLOGICALLY CONTAMINATED FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES BY MICROWAVE PLASMA PROCESSED AIR (PPA)

摘要

Currently used disinfection or sanitation methods for fresh fruits and vegetablesrnlack antimicrobial effectiveness, but are high in costs, water consumption orrnchemicals. One alternative could be to apply nonthermal plasma at atmosphericrnpressure to the described issue. The experimental set-up implements microwavernplasma, which generates plasma processed air (PPA) containing manifold reactivernnitrogen species-based chemical and antimicrobial compounds.rnFive different fresh produces were first contaminated with seven different microorganisms e.g., bacteria, yeasts and endospores followed by a treatment with PPA.rnThe plasma was ignited for 7 s only. After a post-plasma treatment time ofrnmaximum 15 min with PPA, reduction factors of microbiological load greaterrnthan 6 log were detected. Furthermore, sensory examinations showed only littlerninfluences in texture, appearance and odor. The characteristics of plasma and itsrngenerated cocktail of chemical compounds leads to a high microbial inactivationrnon various specimens and offers a wide range of possible applications.