Determination of the Sterilization Time Of Canned Peas (Pisum Sativum) At SaeedFactory, Khartoum, Sudan

Abstract

The experimental work of the present study was partially carried out at The Department of Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Khartoum and Saeed Factory, Khartoum North, Sudan. The objectives of the study were: to determine the sterilization time of canned peas by the graphical and mathematical methods and to compare the determined sterilization times obtained by the two methods. Two metal cans (109 mm in length, 73 mm in internal diameter and 0.22 mm in thickness) were used for the determination of the cold point of the canning container. An air-oven and thermocouples connected to a data logger were used in the experiment. The oven was set at a temperature of 115=616;C and the data logger was configured to record the temperatures at intervals of 5 minutes over a period of two hours. Four cans of the type used in determination of the cold point of the canning container were used for canning peas. A retort set at a temperature of 116=616;C and the thermocouples connected to the data logger were also used in the canning experiment. The data logger was configured to record the temperatures at intervals of 5 minutes over a period of 35 minutes. Results showed that, the position of the cold point of the canning container lies at a distance of 3 cm above the bottom surface and along the vertical axis of the container. The average determined sterilization time of the four cans for the graphical and mathematical methods were 26.7 and 17.5 minutes, respectively. The two sample independent t-test (P=603;0.05) and the linear regression (R2 = 0.0016) statistically revealed that, the two determined sterilization times of the two methods are significantly different. Pressurized canning is suitable for low acid food materials. A clostridium botulinum bacterium is the main causal microorganism of food materials deterioration especially low acid ones. The graphical method compared to the mathematical one is satisfactory in determining correctly the sterilization time of canned peas.