Ultrasonic Thawing of Frozen Foods.food tech

Ultrasonic Thawing of Frozen Foods.food tech

1. Ultrasonic Thawing of Frozen
Foods

2. INTRODUCTION
•Ultrasonic thawing uses high-frequency sound waves to
rapidly thaw frozen foods.
•Sound waves induce molecular motion, breaking up ice
crystals and generating heat.
•Thaws food more quickly and evenly compared to traditional
methods.
•Minimizes surface overheating or texture degradation.
•Applicable to a variety of food products.

3. Basic Principles behind Ultrasonic Thawing
Technology:
Ultrasonic
Waves
Formation
of Tiny
Bubbles
in Liquid
Bubbles
Pop
Release of
Heat and
Pressure
Heat and
Pressure
Warm Up
the Food
Food
Shakes

4. Mechanism of ultrasonic thawing:
•Ultrasonic thawing shortens thawing, reduces lipid oxidation, maintains
meat quality.
•It is based on cavitation, mechanical, thermal effects of ultrasound.
•Cavitation: Bubbles bursts, release energy.
•Mechanical impact: Ultrasonic vibration aids thawing.
•Thermal effect: Ultrasonic energy converts to heat, speeds ice-water
conversion.
•Studies shows that ultrasonic thawing reduces thawing time significantly
compared to conventional methods like air thawing.
•Reduced thawing time by 87% and increased thawing rate from 0.05°C/min
to 0.4°C/min without affecting pork quality.

5. Steps involved in ultrasonic thawing
1
•Ultrasonic Transducer Generates High-Frequency Sound Waves
2
•Sound Waves Penetrate Frozen Food
3
•Formation of Microscopic Bubbles (Cavities) due to Acoustic
Cavitation
4
•Rapid Collapse of Bubbles Releases Energy (Heat and Pressure)
5
•Localized Heating Breaks Down Ice Crystals Inside the Food
6
•Mechanical Agitation Promotes Even Distribution of Heat and
Ensures Uniform Thawing

6. Frequency: Higher frequencies mean better penetration into the food, aiding
efficient thawing.
Power: More power increases the formation of cavitation, speeding up
thawing, but it needs careful control to prevent overheating.
Other Parameters: Duration of exposure, distance from transducer, and
food properties (density, moisture) also influence efficiency.
Optimization of these factors is crucial for rapid and uniform thawing while
preserving food quality.
Parameters Affecting Thawing Efficiency:

7. Various other methods used for thawing frozen food:
•MICROWAVE HEATING
•INFRARED HEATING
•THAWING AT ROOM TEMPERATURE
•THAWING IN STILL WATER

8. Ultrasonic Technology:
1.Single-frequency ultrasonic impregnation thawing (SUIT):
•SUIT employs one ultrasonic frequency to thaw frozen food.
•The intensity of cavitation and thermal effects varies with ultrasonic power
during thawing.
•Excessive ultrasonic power can lead to the destruction of the food's
microstructure and local overheating, affecting food quality.
•Selecting appropriate ultrasonic power is crucial to improve thawing rate and
food quality.
•Higher ultrasonic energy caused substantial protein damage and slower thawing
rates.
•Moderate power enhanced protein stability and resulted in faster thawing rates

9. •Multi-frequency Ultrasonic Impregnation Thawing (MUIT) improves
thawing efficiency and maintains food quality.
•It utilizes multiple ultrasonic frequencies to enhance thawing, water
retention, hardness, and reduce cooking loss.
•Triple ultrasound frequencies promoted better water distribution and
reduced destruction of ice crystals.
•MUIT is beneficial for maintaining quality during thawing processes
Multi-frequency Ultrasonic Impregnation Thawing
(MUIT):

10. During thawing of meat ice crystals melts causing:
•Protein degradation
•Fat oxidation
•Color deterioration
•Reduced water holding capacity
•To improve the quality of thawed meat it is important to adopt appropriate thawing
method.
•This study aims to compare traditional thawing with physical field-based methods
on different meats.

11. Three different kinds of frozen meat were used.
•Pork
•Beef
•Mutton
Thawing loss rate and cooking loss rate of pork, beef and mutton after
thawing by different methods is shown in table.
Ultrasonic thawing results in significantly lower thawing loss and room
temperature thawing showed the highest thawing loss.
•Thawing loss for pork, beef, and mutton in UT: 3.48%, 3.23%, and
3.71%, respectively.
•Thawing loss for pork, beef, and mutton in RTT: 6.10%, 5.86%, and
6.61%, respectively.

12. So, this study concludes that physical field thawing methods, especially
ultrasonic thawing, shorten thawing time and preserve meat quality
effectively, promising commercial application.
Ultrasonic thawing results in significantly lower cooking loss and room
temperature thawing showed the highest cooking loss.
•Cooking loss for pork, beef, and mutton in UT: were 42.35 %, 41.87 %
and 39.98 % respectively.
•Cooking loss for pork, beef, and mutton in RTT 47.3%, 46.26 % and
45.35 %respectively.

13. Thank you