X-ray microtomography to study the microstructure of cream cheese-type products

• Published in: Journal of dairy science Vol. 94; no. 1; pp. 43 - 50
• Main Authors: Laverse, J., Mastromatteo, M., Frisullo, P., Del Nobile, M.A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY Elsevier Inc 01.01.2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: accuracy; Animal productions; Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Cheese - analysis; Chemical Phenomena; cream cheese; cream cheese-type products; dairy products; Dietary Fats - analysis; dynamic-mechanical properties; food analysis; food composition; Food industries; Food Technology - methods; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; lipid content; mechanical properties; microstructural-mechanical structure relationships; microstructure; Milk and cheese industries. Ice creams; quantitative analysis; Terrestrial animal productions; tomography; Vertebrates; viscoelasticity; X-radiation; X-Ray Microtomography; x-ray microtomography; microstructure; cream cheese-type products; Dairy product; Cream cheese; Microstructure; Dairy industry
• ISSN: 0022-0302; 1525-3198
• DOI: 10.3168/jds.2010-3524

In this work, the imaging x-ray microtomography technique, new to the field of food science, was used for the analysis of fat microstructure and quantification of the fat present in cream cheese-type products. Five different types of commercially produced cheeses, chosen for their variability of texture, were used for this experiment: sample A, sample B, sample C, sample D, and sample E. Appropriate quantitative 3-dimensional parameters describing the fat structure were calculated (e.g., the geometric parameter percentage of fat volume was calculated for each image as a representation of the percentage of total fat content within the sample). The dynamic-mechanical properties of these samples were also studied using a controlled-strain rotational rheometer. Storage modulus and loss modulus were determined in a frequency range of 0.01 to 10Hz. The strain value was obtained by preliminary strain sweep oscillatory trials to determine the linear viscoelastic region of the cream cheese-type products. Statistical correlation analysis was performed on the results to help identify any microstructural-mechanical structure relationships. The results from this study show that microtomography is a suitable technique for the microstructural analysis of fat in cream cheese-type products, as it does not only provide an accurate percentage of the volume of the fat present but can also determine its spatial distribution.