Performance of Electrode Materials During Food Processing by Pulsed Electric Fields

Physical and electrical contact between liquid food and the metallic electrodes during the pulsed electric field process for microbial inactivation is unavoidable and causes some metallic ions to be released from the electrodes into the processed food. In this paper, the resistance to the release of metallic ions from electrodes coated with four different materials (Ag, Cr, Ni, and Ti) is compared. Ti has been found to be the most effective of these metals and is compared more extensively with widely used food-grade stainless steel. When the electrodes are made of Ti, the concentration of metal released is always found to be below the 32-ppb detection limit.