Innovative Food Technologies

Innovative Food Technologies

Performance Evaluation of a System Based on Hybrid Thawing Methods for Meat and Meat Products

Document Type : Research Article

Authors
1 Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Jahrom University, P.O. Box 74135-111, Jahrom, Iran
2 Department of Mechanical Engineering of Biosystems, Jahrom University, P.O. Box 74135-111, Jahrom, Iran
3 MSc Student in Biosystems Mechanical Engineering, Abu Raihan Faculty of Agricultural Technology, University of Tehran, Tehran
Abstract
The conventional thawing process of meat causes quality deterioration and high energy consumption due to its lengthy duration. In this study, the efficiency of a hybrid system based on air convection (AC), high-voltage electric field (HV, with an intensity of 6.7 kV/cm), and infrared radiation (IR, with a power of 250 W) was evaluated for thawing beef and 70% meat sausage. Samples frozen at −18 °C were examined under four treatments: AC (control), AC-IR, AC-HV, and AC-IR-HV at an ambient temperature of 20 °C and an air velocity of 0.5 m/s. The results revealed that hybrid systems significantly reduced the process time (P < 0.01); specifically, in 70% sausage, thawing time decreased from 20 min in AC to 8 min in AC-IR-HV (a 60% reduction), and in beef, it dropped from 24 to 10–11 min. The generation of ionic wind in the AC-HV treatment reduced specific energy consumption and established the best balance between process speed and energy efficiency. Texture analysis (hardness) indicated that hybrid treatments significantly prevented structural weakening caused by drip loss (P < 0.01). The highest tissue hardness values in beef and sausage were observed in AC-IR-HV (11.14 and 5.65 N, respectively) and AC-HV (10.43 and 5.60 N), while the lowest values corresponded to the AC control (8.12 and 4.43 N). Overall, the AC-HV treatment is recommended for simultaneously maintaining textural quality and energy efficiency, whereas the AC-IR-HV treatment is suggested for minimizing process time.
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 12 October 2026

  • Receive Date 01 August 2026
  • Revise Date 12 October 2026
  • Accept Date 12 October 2026
  • First Publish Date 12 October 2026
  • Publish Date 12 October 2026