ABSTRACT Peach (Prunus persica) is a highly perishable fruit with short shelf-life and susceptible to mechanical damage during harvest and post-harvest operations such as sorting, processing, packaging, and transport. Therefore, converting peaches into dehydrated products will not only reduce their post-harvest losses but also retain their nutritional and sensory qualities. The current study aimed at the optimization of process parameters of foam-mat drying for the production of peach powder from the peaches grown in Ontario, Canada. The operating parameters of foam-mat dryer such as temperatures (65°C, 70°C, and 75°C), foam thickness (3, 5, and 7 mm) and the concentration of foaming agents (soy and pea protein isolates (0.5% w/w, 1% w/w, and 1.5% w/w), were optimized using response surface methodology. The resulting peach powder obtained after drying was assessed for moisture, color, total phenols, antioxidant activity, microstructure, and thermal properties. It was observed that drying time increased with an increase in foam thickness and decreased with an increase in temperature and foaming agent concentrations. The optimum drying rate obtained for both proteins based foams was observed at 65°C. Physico-chemical analysis of peach powder showed significantly higher retention of bioactive components such as total phenols and antioxidants in foam mat dried peach powder containing PPI as the foaming agent. The differential scanning calorimetry thermogram for both protein isolates suggested a denaturation temperature of proteins was around 85°C. No significant difference was observed in the morphological structure of powders obtained by using both protein isolates as foaming agents.

中文翻译：

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桃子泡沫垫干燥工艺参数优化

摘要桃（Prunus persica）是一种极易腐烂的水果，保质期短，在收获和收获后操作（如分拣、加工、包装和运输）过程中容易受到机械损坏。因此，将桃子转化为脱水产品不仅可以减少其收获后的损失，还可以保留其营养和感官品质。目前的研究旨在优化泡沫垫干燥工艺参数，以从加拿大安大略省种植的桃子生产桃子粉。泡沫垫干燥机的操作参数，如温度（65°C、70°C 和 75°C）、泡沫厚度（3、5 和 7 毫米）和发泡剂浓度（大豆和豌豆分离蛋白（ 0.5% w/w、1% w/w 和 1.5% w/w)，使用响应面方法进行优化。对干燥后得到的桃粉进行水分、颜色、总酚、抗氧化活性、微观结构和热性能评估。观察到干燥时间随着泡沫厚度的增加而增加，随着温度和发泡剂浓度的增加而减少。在 65°C 下观察到两种基于蛋白质的泡沫获得的最佳干燥速率。桃粉的物理化学分析表明，在含有 PPI 作为发泡剂的泡沫垫干燥桃粉中，生物活性成分（如总酚和抗氧化剂）的保留率显着提高。两种蛋白质分离物的差示扫描量热热谱图表明蛋白质的变性温度约为 85°C。