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Updated: Oct 15, 2025

A Microfluidic Approach for the Study of Ice and Clathrate Hydrate Crystallization
Published on: August 18, 2022
The rise of thawing drip: Freezing rate effects on ice crystallization and myowater dynamics changes
Shuyi Qian1, Feifei Hu2, Waris Mehmood2
1Key Laboratory of Agro-Products Processing, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China; Unit of Food Science and Formulation, University of Liège, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Passage Des Déportés 2, Gembloux B-5030, Belgium.
Abstract:
To better reveal the formation of thawing drip, this study investigated the ice crystallization and myowater dynamics changes in frozen bovine Longissimus dorsi muscle. In ultra-fast freezing a narrow distribution of ice crystals size was observed together with higher solubility, lower surface hydrophobicity and stable second structure of myofibrillar protein. Accordingly, ultra-fast freezing samples exhibited significantly lower thaw loss (4.35 %) than slow freezing (8.22 %) after 48 h of freezing. Upon thawing, 2D T1-T2 relaxation spectra indicated a myowater redistribution, in which slow freezing led to major migration of water from immobile water to free water. Besides, T1 and T2 relaxation times showed an increasing trend with freezing process. The proton density images displayed major free water seep from myofibrils to the surface of muscle. Consequently, the water from the "reservoir" (free water) flowed into the "channel" (the widened spaces between muscle fibres), and formed into the thawing drip.
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