INACTIVATION OF ESCHERICHIA-COLI AND SACCHAROMYCES-CEREVISIAE BY PULSED ELECTRIC-FIELDS UNDER CONTROLLED TEMPERATURE CONDITIONS

To study the feasibility of high-voltage pulsed electric field treatme nt as a food pasteurization technique, astatic treatment unit was cons tructed to process 25 mL batches of foods with electric field strength s up to 40 kV/cm. A heat transfer model was developed to predict fluid food temperatures during the application of pulsed electric fields in the microbial inactivation tests. The heat transfer model was verifie d by comparing model predictions with experimental measurements. While maintaining fluid food temperatures below 25-degrees-C, E. coli and S . cerevisiae were treated with pulsed electric fields. A three to four decimal reduction in microbial viability was observed.