ULTRASONIC STUDY OF MILK-CLOTTING

The aim of this study was to understand the structure-properties relat ionships of the different physical gels built by milk clotting. The in vestigation of their clotting mechanisms and an approach of the mechan ical properties of gels were realized. Ultrasonic wave propagation, a non-destructive investigation tool, was used as an original and privil eged means of investigation for milk clotting study. The work presente d in this article shows the possibility to obtain an ultrasonic signal related to the different steps of milk clotting and to some of their key parameters. In addition, two distinct ultrasonic response curves h ave been obtained for rennet and acid coagulation. From the obtained r esults, it appears to be possible to use ultrasonic techniques for mon itoring milk coagulation, however, more research is needed for their v alidation as a routine tool.