Loading...
Demonstration tests of infrared peeling system with electrical emitters for tomatoes
Author(s)
Date Issued
January 1, 2016
Type
Article
Abstract
Infrared (IR) dry-peeling is an emerging technology that could avoid the drawbacks of steam and lye peeling of tomatoes. The objectives of this research were to evaluate the performance of an IR peeling system at two tomato processing plants in California and to compare product quality, peelability, and energy consumption of IR and steam peeling. The system was continuously operated using tomatoes of different sizes and cultivars. High percentages (62% to 85%) of fully peeled tomatoes were obtained and varied depending on tomato cultivar and seasonality. IR dry-peeled tomatoes had a firmer texture than steam and lye peeled tomatoes. IR peeling achieved a peeling loss in the range of 17% to 42%, which was lower than typical loss in the industry. Small tomatoes had higher loss than large tomatoes in the late season. Thermal energy consumption of the proposed technology in full-scale production (10 ton h-1) is predicted to be 117.0 and 137.3 MJ ton-1 for indoor and outdoor operation, respectively. The estimated energy savings of IR dry-peeling should be 22% and 28% compared to lye and steam peeling, respectively. The demonstration results showed that the IR dry-peeling technology could be a viable alternative to lye and steam peeling.
Citation
Transactions of the Asabe, 59(4), 985-994, 2016