Lyophilized Vegetable-Fruit Pulp Crisp via Freeze-Drying

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current methods for producing crispy products from vegetable and fruit pulp fail to preserve essential bioactive ingredients and do not result in a crunchy texture without adding unhealthy additives, as they often involve high heat treatments, excessive sugar, or the use of stabilizing agents.

Innovation Solution

A method involving dewatering fruits and vegetables to obtain pulp, mixing with concentrated kefir (up to 80% moisture and 1-50% by weight), shaping, freezing, and then lyophilizing under vacuum to produce a crunchy product without additives, while allowing for optional additions like oil seeds or cereals to enhance binding.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Shape

If high heat treatment is applied to fruit and vegetable pulp to achieve crispy texture, then the product becomes crunchy, but essential bioactive ingredients are lost

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecrispy textureVSAvoidbioactive ingredients
Core Design Contradiction:
ShapeVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs freeze-drying (lyophilization) which utilizes phase transition from solid to gas (sublimation) to remove water from frozen fruit/vegetable pulp. This low-temperature process achieves crispy texture without the high heat that would degrade bioactive ingredients, directly resolving the contradiction between achieving crunchiness and preserving nutrients.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the temperature parameter from high heat (conventional drying) to low temperature freezing followed by vacuum sublimation. This parameter change enables the formation of crispy structure through ice crystal formation and removal, while maintaining bioactive ingredients that would be destroyed by high heat treatment.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Shape

If stabilizing agents and additives are added to fruit pulp to achieve crispy structure, then the product maintains crunchy texture, but the product contains unhealthy additives

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecrispy structureVSAvoidadditives
Core Design Contradiction:
ShapeVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent removes the need for stabilizing agents and additives by using freeze-drying technology that naturally creates crispy structure through water removal. The invention extracts the harmful element (additives) from the system while achieving the desired crispy texture through physical phase change alone, making the product clean-label and healthy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Quantity of substance

If fruit and vegetable pulp is concentrated through heat treatment and evaporation, then the dry matter rate increases, but the product requires additional stabilizing agents to achieve crispy form

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedry matter rateVSAvoidprocess complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses freeze-drying which combines freezing and vacuum sublimation in one integrated process to achieve both concentration (increased dry matter rate) and crispy structure formation simultaneously. This eliminates the need for separate evaporation steps and stabilizing agents, reducing process complexity while achieving the desired product properties.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #36Phase transitions

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

Preserves the nutritional value and texture of the pulp, achieving a high-fiber, low-glycemic index crunchy product with retained beta carotene, suitable for direct consumption without any additives, and extending shelf life through packaging under nitrogen or vacuum.

Implementation Method 1

lyophilization of the frozen products under vacuum

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectLyophilization: Freeze Drying

Implementation Method 2

freezing the products on the trays

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectFreezing: Freezing

Implementation Method 3

squeezing fruits-vegetables and thus dewatering the same

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectMechanical pressure: Compression

Data Source

PatentEP3562324B1Vegetable-fruit pulp crisp
Publication Date: 2023.03.22 TUBITAK

AI summary

The invention relates to a method of obtaining vegetable and/or fruit pulp crisp which is easy to eat any time and does not comprise any additive. The invention is a production method of vegetable-fruit pulp crisp, characterized by comprising the process steps of: squeezing fruits-vegetables and thus dewatering the same and obtaining the pulp thereof; adding a concentrated milk product into the obtained pulp; mixing all the contents; shaping the mixture; spreading the shaped products on the tray; freezing the products on the trays; and lyophilization of the frozen products under vacuum.