Supercooling Perishable Products Using Oscillating Magnetic and Pulsed Electric Fields
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Solution Overview
Problem
Freezing and thawing processes cause irreversible damage to food products due to ice crystallization, leading to quality degradation, and existing methods fail to effectively prolong the supercooled state in perishable materials during storage.
Innovation Solution
Applying a combination of oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields to maintain perishable products in a supercooled state below their freezing point, preventing ice crystal formation and maintaining product quality for extended periods.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If freezing is used to preserve food products, then safety and long-term quality are improved, but ice crystal formation causes structural damage and quality degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields to change the physical parameters of water molecules, preventing their transition to ice crystals while maintaining sub-freezing temperatures. This parameter change approach modifies the molecular behavior without changing the temperature threshold, thereby preserving food structure while achieving long-term storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs periodic oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields applied at specific frequencies and intervals to continuously prevent ice nucleation. This periodic action maintains the supercooled state by repeatedly disrupting the formation of ice crystal lattices, thereby preventing structural damage while ensuring food safety.
2Reliability
If conventional freezing methods are used, then food safety is ensured, but quality attributes such as color, taste, and freshness are degraded
Solution Approach 1:
By applying oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields, the patent changes the molecular parameters of water to prevent ice crystal formation. This prevents the structural and chemical changes that normally occur during freezing, thereby maintaining sensory properties like color, taste, and freshness while ensuring food safety through sub-freezing storage temperatures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potentially harmful effect of sub-freezing temperatures (which would normally cause ice formation and quality loss) into a beneficial state by using electromagnetic fields to maintain a supercooled liquid state. This allows the low temperature to preserve food safety and extend storage life without the harmful effects of freezing.
3Temperature
If supercooling is attempted without electromagnetic fields, then temperature can be reduced below freezing point, but ice nucleation occurs rapidly and the supercooled state cannot be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields at specific frequencies to continuously prevent ice nucleation. This periodic intervention maintains the supercooled state indefinitely by repeatedly disrupting the formation of ice crystal nuclei, thereby extending the duration of the supercooled state from minutes to potentially unlimited periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The oscillating magnetic fields and pulsed electric fields act as intermediaries between the sub-freezing environment and the water molecules. These electromagnetic fields mediate the interaction by preventing the molecules from organizing into ice crystal structures, thereby allowing the supercooled state to be maintained without spontaneous freezing.
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
The method effectively prevents ice nucleation, maintaining the quality of food and biological products by keeping them in a supercooled state for up to two weeks without significant changes in color, drip loss, or tenderness, and ensuring the products remain viable for their intended use.
Implementation Method 1
cooling the perishable product to a temperature in the range of about 0° C. to about −20° C. while applying an oscillating magnetic field to the perishable product
Implementation Method 2
applying an oscillating magnetic field to the perishable product
Implementation Method 3
a pulsed electric field is also applied while cooling the product. Once cooled, the oscillating magnetic field and a pulsed electric field are applied to the product
Data Source
AI summary
Perishable products, such as food products, can be preserved by cooling to temperatures below their freezing point without ice crystallization. In some embodiments, the perishable product is cooled to temperatures below the freezing point of water while a pulsed electric field and oscillating magnetic field are applied to the product. Apparatus for supercooling perishable products are also provided and include a pulsed electric field generator and an oscillating magnetic field generator.