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Membrane Packaging System to Permit Safe Hydration of Freeze‐Dried Contents with Impure Water
Author(s) -
SCHIMMEL KEITH A.,
WURIE ALIEU,
ILIAS SHAMSUDDIN,
PEGRAM JAN E.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of food science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1750-3841
pISSN - 0022-1147
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2621.1996.tb13162.x
Subject(s) - membrane , salt (chemistry) , polyamide , chemistry , relative humidity , permeability (electromagnetism) , polymer , chromatography , chemical engineering , salt water , microorganism , food packaging , food science , materials science , environmental science , polymer chemistry , environmental engineering , biochemistry , organic chemistry , biology , bacteria , physics , engineering , thermodynamics , genetics
We tested the feasibility of using polymer membranes for a self‐hydrating packaging system to reconstitute freeze‐dried foods using nonpurified water. Several commercial membranes were screened according to (1) hydration rate, (2) water permeability, (3) passage of microorganisms, (4) salt rejection, and (5) strength. The most promising membranes were used for developing and testing prototype packaging systems. A feasible self‐contained rehydration system was a nylon‐6 polyamide membrane that rehydrated the freeze‐dried food within 30 min while passage of microorganisms was prevented. The temperature was 37°C, and the food contained 0.5g/5g of a low molecular weight solute (salt). Such self‐contained membrane rehydration systems must be designed to accommodate expected environmental conditions such as temperature, relative humidity, and nature of the product.