H2020Индивидуална стипендия2018–2019

CAP-SAliPharm · Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) sterilization of powdered products: optimization and validation at alimentary and pharmaceutical levels

„Хоризонт 2020“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“

Период: 2018-01-01 → 2019-12-31
Финансиране от ЕС: 187 420 €
Участници: 1
Схема: MSCA-IF

Линиите свързват координатора с партньорите.

Накратко на български

Студената атмосферна плазма се изследва като метод за стерилизация на прахообразни продукти, като например бебешки формули и подправки. Това помага за намаляване на опасните бактерии, без да се уврежда съставът на продуктите чрез висока температура или влага.

Този кратък обзор е генериран от изкуствен интелект

Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.

Резултати накратко

Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) sterilization of powdered products: optimization and validation at alimentary and pharmaceutical levels

Today, sterilization of powder products remains a challenge for the food industry due to its heat and moisture sensitivity. Therefore, the focus of the scientific community lies on novel processes under the urgent need to develop even more safe food powders (e.g. infant formulas and cereals, protein isolates, spices, nutritional supplements, among others). Bacteria are widely capable to survive in powders during long periods and might proliferate quickly after the rehydration with fatal consequences mainly in infants and elderlies. Recent cases of Salmonella spp. and Bacillus spp. contamination of infant milk formulas have been reported. The present project aimed to improve Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) treatments for the reduction of microorganisms in powdered food and pharmaceutical products. The plasma was generated in air or nitrogen by a partial ionization of the gas in a high voltage electric field. Improvements are associated with reductions in the intensity of the plasma treatment (time and plasma power) at relevant rates of inactivation. It was studied how the decrease of the treatment intensity reduces modifications of the powder matrix and thus contributes to a minimization of the formation of side products and a reduction toxicological risk. Based on experiences with sub-atmospheric capacitively coupled and atmospheric dielectric barrier discharge plasma, a surface micro-discharge (SMD) plasma chamber was designed. This SMD device is supposed to be advantageous and relevant for an industrial application for the ambient pressure at plasma ignition, the possibility to control the process gas composition, the free choice of the distance of the sample to the source and thus reducing the plasma intensity with the distance at modified composition, the ease of scalability via a simple plasma surface extension and the ease of transition from a batch to a continuous process. Conclusions on a design with relevance for industrial application are first linked to a description of the kinetics of inactivation of microorganisms and the alteration of the powder matrix.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз

Цел на проекта

Insight market requirements are leading the R&D at food technology area to provide ready-to-eat products, microbiologically safe, with organoleptic and nutritional added value, and as longest as possible shelf-life guided by international trade search of competitiveness. Powders are worldwide distributed commodities. Valuable properties associated to them are: stability; easy storage and transportation; nutritional compounds integrated in formulas; price; and limited microbial proliferation. In spite of these characteristics, nowadays the sterilization of powders is not completely solved. Spore-forming bacteria are widely capable to survive in powders during long periods of time, initiating after the rehydration process, a rapid germination and proliferative activity with fatal consequences mainly in infant and elderly. The present project aims to analyse the Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) technology application integrating the study of process parameters and reference powders characteristics to optimize the sterilization process of alimentary and pharmaceutical products. Moreover, the optimized conditions will be validated in real matrices, infant powder (milk formula and cereals) and multivitamin and protein complexes. Finally, the optimized conditions at pre-industrial level will be delivered in technical sheets regarding the technological, microbiological and risk-assessment relevant outputs of the project, contributing to provide the methodological basis for the industrial establishment of more sustainable production of a new generation of powdered products. Such system for powders sterilization has not been described previously and is one of the most ambitious points of research in the present MSCA framework. The present project aims to contribute to the cutting-edge of this technology application at International level, making a significant impact on the position of the European Union in the know-how regarding CAP application.

Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).

Участници

HAUTE ECOLE SPECIALISEE DE SUISSE OCCIDENTALE · DelemontКоординаторШвейцария