Latest Texture Analysis in Research: Acoustics

There’s an entire industry dedicated to making foods crispy. Ever wondered why we are so drawn to the snap of a potato chip or the crackle of fried chicken – it’s down to biology, psychology and an incredible amount of engineering.

Crispness is a critical attribute of quality for crispy products, which can be evaluated through both instrumental and sensory analysis.  Here is a round-up of the type of research that is going on around the world into this amazing textural feature.

Latest Texture Analysis in Research: Vegetables

Is there a best technique to cook vegetables? A study carried out at the University of Brazil about physical and sensory aspects to stimulate their consumption has attempted to answer this. 

Consumers are becoming more health-conscious and have less time to prepare meals. They are often confused about which time and cooking method are adequate to preserve nutrients in vegetables. All cooking techniques cause changes in the nutrient content and the taste of a vegetable. 

The objective of this study was to determine the best cooking method for different vegetables using sensory evaluation and instrumental analysis of texture and colour. The chosen vegetables for this study were broccoli, carrot and Brazilian zucchini because they are among the most consumed vegetables in Brazil. The cooking methods were boiling, steaming, cooking in the combined oven, microwave, and steaming in the microwave.

Texture Analysis: A tool in the fight against HIV

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that damages the cells in the immune system and weakens a person’s ability to fight everyday infections and disease.

While AIDS cannot be transmitted from one person to another, the HIV virus can. There is currently no cure for HIV, but there are very effective drug treatments that enable most people with the virus to live a long and healthy life.

In the three decades since the first cases of AIDS were reported, investments in basic, biomedical, behavioural, and social science research have led to numerous HIV prevention interventions and life-saving treatments. Texture Analysis has an important role in this research, specifically in the improvement of drug delivery systems. This blog post contains some examples of Texture Analysis in HIV research in recent years.

How Texture Analysis is helping save our planet

In a world that has woken up to the reality of climate change and other environmental matters, a large amount of research goes into developing eco-friendlier approaches to everyday objects and processes. 

Environmental concerns have become more important to consumers, leading many companies to design products around sustainability principles. This can be focussed on reducing energy consumption in manufacturing processes, improving recyclability, using waste products or replacing materials with biodegradable alternatives. 

Texture Analysis plays an important role in ensuring standards are maintained in areas such as material mechanical properties and food texture. A large amount of research in this area occurs in an academic context; this blog post contains some examples of Texture Analysis in Research.

Texture Analysis in Research: Latest Packaging Innovations

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology have been investigating 3D printing of grinding and milling fractions of rice husk. 

 

With the aim of sustainability approaches and production of designer 3D food packages, this study examined the effect of printability of rice husk fractions of different size reduction methods. Extrusion tests were performed for both the rice husk fractions, and 3D printing process parameters were optimised for the ‘box’ shaped 3D model. Rheological behaviour and physical characteristics were analysed for all the material supplies. 

 

They used their TA.HDplus Texture Analyser to measure the mechanical strength of the material supply and the effect of the addition of hydrocolloids. The study successfully demonstrated the conversion of non-printable rice husk into a printable form by the addition of guar gum into the milled fraction, which can be further utilised in food packaging, reducing the dependency on non-degradable petroleum-based plastics. Find out more

Texture Analysis in the 3D Printing Industry

In the 3D printing process, a physical object is produced from a 3D digital model. This generally occurs by the laying down of successive thin layers of material to bring the digital model to life.

The steps involved in this process will vary depending on the type of printer and the raw materials involved, but generally they are as follows:

1: A 3D model is created using a modelling package or 3D scanner, saved as a Computer Aided Design (CAD) file

2: The user slices the CAD file and uploads it to the printer

3: The printer reads and creates each 2D slice to form a 3D object

Texture Analysis: A tool in the fight against cancer

“More than 40 years after the war on cancer was declared, we have spent billions fighting the good fight. The National Cancer Institute has spent some $90 billion on research and treatment during that time.

"Some 260 nonprofit organisations in the United States have dedicated themselves to cancer — more than the number established for heart disease, AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, and stroke combined. Together, these 260 organisations have budgets that top $2.2 billion.” (Dr Margaret Cuomo, A World Without Cancer)

A large proportion of people donate to the world’s cancer research movement either directly or by running sponsored marathons, holding charity bake sales, charity shopping or by countless other indirect donation routes. However, the average donor gives their money with full trust to cancer research charities that it will be spent wisely. Charities publish their annual expenditure breakdown, but unless a donor regularly reads research articles, it can be difficult to understand the specifics of cancer research.

This blog post gives several examples of recent cancer research from around the world, and the role that Texture Analysis has to play.

Texture Analysis: A tool to help the development of new food products from byproducts

In a linear economy we ‘take’ raw materials from the environment, ‘make’ something, ‘use’ or don’t use it, and finally ‘dispose’ of it. 

 

For example: in a supermarket, food that is still good but needs to be removed from shelves – often due to inventory or overstock reasons – typically heads to the landfill. We need to adopt a new approach to avoid this wasteful situation that challenges economies across the globe. A circular approach – reuse, recycle, remake, redistribute – aims to ensure zero food waste in the food chain. 

 

Aside from the waste associated with retailers and consumers there is a growing interest in the potential use of food manufacture by-products and how they can be reintroduced into the manufacture of new products. This would not only reduces waste but also provides a nutrient recycling opportunity and establishes a more efficient and sustainable food supply chain.