Comparison of aluminum thermal-death-time disks with a pilot-scale pasteurizer on the thermal inactivation of Escherichia coli K12 in apple cider

This study was conducted to compare thermal inactivation kinetics obtained using a pilot-scale pasteurizer and a bench-scale processing system. Pilot-scale pasteurizers are useful for product development, but comparisons on thermal inactivation kinetics with smaller scale systems are lacking. Using an Armfield pilot-scale pasteurizer and aluminum thermal-death-time (TDT) disks, the D-values and z-values of Escherichia coli K12 in apple cider were determined in the temperature range of 54–62 °C. Come-up times to 58 °C were also measured and were 35 and 61 s for the TDT disks and pasteurizer, respectively. The D-values from the TDT disks were 9.66, 4.01, 1.44 and 0.44 min at temperatures of 54, 56, 58, and 60 °C, respectively. The D-values from the pasteurizer were 3.48, 1.22, 0.10 and 0.05 min at temperatures of 56, 58, 60, and 62 °C, respectively. The z-values from the TDT disks and the pasteurizer were 4.68 and 3.60 °C, respectively. There was no significant (P > 0.05) difference in the D-values of the TDT disks and pasteurizer at 56 and 58 °C, while there was a significant (P < 0.05) difference in the D-value at 60 °C and in the z-value. This study revealed that the thermal inactivation kinetics obtained using bench scale TDT disks and an Armfield pilot-scale pasteurizer under certain conditions are similar. However, based on ease of use and other factors, TDT disks are preferable for acquiring thermal inactivation kinetics.