Calculation of full process freezing time in minced fish muscle

Area of Science:

• Food science
• Thermal engineering
• Mathematical modeling

Background:

• Accurate prediction of food freezing times is crucial for food safety and quality.
• Previous methods for modeling freezing times require enhancement for broader applications.
• Understanding temperature kinetics during freezing is essential for process optimization.

Purpose of the Study:

• To expand and refine a previously developed method for modeling food freezing times.
• To provide a versatile modeling procedure applicable to various food products and freezing scenarios.
• To simulate freezing times necessary for inactivating foodborne parasites, such as anisakids.

Main Methods:

• The method models temperature kinetics in three distinct phases: cooling, freezing, and further cooling.
• It utilizes established estimation procedures and accounts for different thermophysical properties during cooling stages.
• Freezing time is calculated first for an infinite flat plate and then corrected for finite cylindrical geometry.

Main Results:

• A detailed calculation example for freezing hake mince muscle is provided, illustrating the method's application.
• The model successfully breaks down the total freezing time into pre-freezing, freezing, and sub-freezing phases.
• The enhanced procedure offers a more accurate simulation of freezing processes in food products.

Conclusions:

• The refined modeling method provides a robust framework for predicting food freezing times.
• This approach is valuable for ensuring food safety, particularly in parasite inactivation.
• The method's adaptability makes it suitable for diverse food processing and thermal modeling applications.