Effect of high shear homogenization on quality characteristics of bael fruit pulp

Response surface methodology was used to investigate the influence of high shear homogenization speed (A: 3000-12 000 r/min) and processing time (B: 30-120 min) on bael fruit pulp quality parameters. The experimental results were best fitted in the suggested quadratic model to delineate and envision the responses in terms of color (values of L*, meaning brightness to blackness, 100-0; a*, meaning green -a* to red +a*; and b*, meaning blue -b* to yellow +b), total soluble solids, ascorbic acid, viscosity, and beta-carotene content with the highest coefficients of determination (R-2) ranging from 0.80 to 0.99. Significant (P<0.05) change in the L* value, total soluble solids, ascorbic acid, and beta-carotene content was found with change in homogenization speed. The interaction effect of homogenization showed a significant difference in a* value and total soluble solid content of the pulp. The best homogenization conditions were determined via multiple response optimization as 10 682 r/min speed and 43.18 min process time. The quality parameters of the pulp at optimized conditions were observed as L* 15.35, a* 4.51, b* 10.25, ascorbic acid 18.64 mg/100 g, viscosity 5349 cP, and beta-carotene 4.14 mu g/100 g. In addition, total phenolic content, flavonoid content, and antioxidant content of homogenized bael fruit pulp was found to significantly (P<0.05) increase from (83.76 +/- 1.24) to (119.21 +/- 1.35) mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/100 mL, (147.39 +/- 0.69) to (156.10 +/- 1.11) mg quercetin equivalent (QE)/100 mL, and (41.77%+/- 0.60%) to (66.53%+/- 0.41%), respectively. Consequently, this strategy could be used in fruit processing industries to process highly fibrous fruits and nonuniform-textured fruit pulp to avoid sedimentation while retaining functionality.