Mass transfer of pork meat cubes (M. triceps brachii), shaped as 1x1x1 cm, during osmotic dehydration (OD) and under atmospheric pressure was investigated in this paper. The effects of different parameters, such as concentration of sugar beet molasses (60-80%, w/w), temperature (20-50?C), and immersion time (1-5 h) in terms of water loss (WL), solid gain (SG), final dry matter content (DM), and water activity (aw), were investigated using experimental results. Five artificial neural network (ANN) models were developed for the prediction of WL, SG, DM, and aw in OD of pork meat cubes. These models were able to predict process outputs with coefficient of determination, r2, of 0.990 for SG, 0.985 for WL, 0.986 for aw, and 0.992 for DM compared to experimental measurements. The wide range of processing variables considered for the formulation of these models, and their easy implementation in a spreadsheet calculus make it very useful and practical for process design and control.

The osmotic dehydration (OD) of celery root in sugar beet molasses was studied at three temperatures (20, 35, and 50 °C) and three immersion periods (1, 3, and 5 h) in order to examine the changes in antioxidant potential and phenolic profile of celery root throughout the process. The antioxidant capacity (AOC) of dehydrated samples was evaluated by spectrophotometric and polarographic assays, the total phenolic content by the Folin-Ciocalteu method, and the individual phenolic compounds by HPLC-DAD. As a result of OD in molasses, the AOC and phenols content in samples increased proportionally to the augmentation of temperature and the immersion time. Vanillic acid, syringic acid, and catechin were detected in dehydrated samples as a result of transfer from molasses. Compared to fresh celery root, the content of identified phenols in osmodehydrated samples was improved from 1.5 to 6.2 times. Strong correlations between applied assays were obtained, except for the DPPH. Based on the correlation analysis chlorogenic acid, gallic acid, chrysin, catechin, and kaempferol showed the greatest contribution to the overall AOC of osmodehydrated celery root. Molasses, an agro-industrial waste from sugar production, could be valorized as a valuable osmotic solution.

This study aimed to evaluate the potential of the bacterium Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes to adhere to stainless steel discs with differing degrees of surface roughness (Ra = 25.20-961.90 nm). Stainless steel is a material commonly used in the food industry for processing equipment, which is regularly exposed to cleaning procedures. The investigation included the commercial disinfectants hydrogen peroxide/peracetic acid and sodium hypochlorite which were evaluated for their antibacterial and anti-adhesion activity. The adhesion was assessed by the standard plate count method, while the broth microdilution method CLSI M07-A10 was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the disinfectants. Based on the MIC values, both disinfectants exerted significant inhibitory effects with MIC values for hydrogen peroxide/peracetic acid and sodium hypochlorite of 250 µg ml^-1 and 500 µg ml^-1, respectively. Whereas the MBC values were equal to the MIC for all bacteria except for E. coli with values 2-fold higher than the MIC. Obtained results also revealed that all tested bacteria were able to adhere to stainless steel surfaces, although differences were found for strains and surface roughness. The lowest adhesion rate of each strain was recorded on the roughest stainless steel disc at a Ra of 961.90 nm. Further, at a concentration of 1 MIC, the disinfectant sodium hypochlorite reduced initial bacterial adhesion to stainless steel surfaces to a significantly greater extent than the disinfectant hydrogen peroxide/peracetic acid. These findings are consistent with the results obtained by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) analysis, which indicates the great applicability of the tested disinfectants for the control of bacterial adhesion in the food industry.

The present study investigated the effect of incorporating 10, 20, and 30% apple powder obtained by freeze-drying, and apple powder produced with osmotic pre-treatment in sugar beet molasses solution, into muffins. The powder was freeze-dried and introduced as a whole spelt wheat flour replacement in muffins. The obtained products were investigated for their chemical composition and technological properties, and were subjected to a sensory analysis as well as a consumer acceptance test. Increasing the substitution level from 0 to 30% apple powder lowered the protein, starch, and fat content, while moisture content, sugar, and cellulose showed the opposite trend. The sensory analysis results indicated that the addition of apple powder or apple powder with osmotic pre-treatment (apple OT+Lyo powder) to the ingredients of muffins positively affected the taste, smell, mastication, and appearance of the final product. Consumers rated the muffins with 30% apple OT+Lyo powder as the most acceptable. Principal component analysis, an artificial neural network, and global sensitivity analysis were utilized to differentiate among muffin samples, and to estimate the corresponding influence of the substitution of spelt flour with apple powder or apple OT powder on the observed quality and nutritional parameters of the muffins.

The negative external effects caused by traffic growth have been recognized as the main factors that degrade city quality of life. Therefore, research around the world is being conducted to understand the impact of traffic better and find adequate measures to reduce the negative impact of traffic growth. The central part of this research consists of mathematical models for simulating the negative consequences of congestion and noise pollution. Four non-linear models for determining noise levels as a function of traffic flow parameters (intensity and structure) in the urban environment were developed. The non-linear models, including two artificial neural networks and two random forest models, were developed according to the experimental measurements in Novi Sad, Serbia, in 2019. These non-linear models showed high anticipation accuracy of the equivalent continuous sound level (Laeq), with R² values of 0.697, 0.703, 0.959 and 0.882, respectively. According to the developed ANN models, global sensitivity analysis was performed, according to which the number of buses at crossings was the most positively signed influential parameter in Laeq evaluation, while the lowest Laeq value was reached during nighttime. The locations occupied by frequent traffic such as Futoska and Temerinska positively influenced the Laeq value.

Osmotic dehydration is important food preservation method because of many advantages considering mild processing temperature, base waste material and low energy requirements. The goal of this research was to investigate the effects of the process temperaute, time and osmotic solution concentration on the effectiveness of the chicken meat osmotic dehydration process in osmotic solution of sodium сhloride and sucrose. Developed mathematical models had good fit with experimental data, while maximal obtained values of process responses of: dry matter content: 58.30 ± 0.22%; water loss: 0.4791 ± 0.0014 g/g_i.s.; solid gain: 0.1579 ± 0.0024 g/g_i.s. and water activity: 0.800 ± 0.001; indicated on good dehydration levels and that applied osmotic solution is very good osmotic medium. Application of principal component analysis has provided better visualization in differentiation of the samples, while score analysis was used to point at optimal combination of technological parameters in effort to obtain best osmotic dehydration process results. Process of osmotic dehydration is commonly used technique for food processing since its low energy requirements for water removal, minimal waste material and possibility of producing new types of food products from animal and plant raw matterials. This study investigates the effects of applied technological parameters on the process of osmotic dehydration of chicken meat. Developed mathematical models in this research can be considered as precise for process parameters prediction and optimization in experimental and industrial applications. The analysis of the osmotic dehydration process efficiency points at the optimal combination of applied technological parameters in effort to obtain best osmotic dehydration process results.