Tugas 3 - Review Paper

J. agric. Engng Res.
(1985) 32,209-241
REVIEW PAPER
Optical Methods for Nondestructive Quality Evaluation of

Agricultural and Biological Materials
S. GUNASEKARAN*; M. R. PAULSEN*; G. C. SHOVE*
Literature which reports on optical methods of nondestructive quality evaluation of agricultural

and biological materials is reviewed. The basic laws and interaction of light with biological
materials are presented with particular regard to their applicability in quality evaluation. A wide
range of agricultural and biological materials such as fruits, vegetables, seeds, cereal grains, eggs
and meat products are considered. Optical evaluation of maturity, viability, external damage,
internal defects and other quality attributes are dealt with. The suitability of each method to
successfully indicating defective samples is examined.
The phenomenon of delayed light emission (DLE) by green plant materials and the factors
affecting it are presented. The potential of DLE in nondestructively evaluating the quality of fruits
and vegetables is discussed and its advantages over conventional spectrophotometric methods are
considered.
From the information cited in this review, data on optical properties of each product serving as
an index of quality are put together in a single table to serve as a ready reference. Possible future
approaches of further research in optical methods of quality evaluation are also discussed.
1. Introduction
The judgement of colour and its faithful reproduction are some of the most important aspects
in the commercial and industrial world. The quality of many products may be judged by the
colours they display or fail to display. It is particularly critical in cases of agricultural products
such as fruits and vegetables, cereal grains and processed foods. Human evaluation has been the
primary method of quality assessment for operations such as grading and sorting of food pro-
ducts but such an evaluation can hardly provide a general standard on a large scale and wide
range of operations. Factors such as eye fatigue, lack of colour memory, variations in colour dis-
crimination between individuals, personal bias and variations in lighting conditions greatly
influence the decision of an individual in determining the quality of a certain product. Moreover,
the human eye is greatly limited by its perceptions in a very narrow band, the visible region
(400 nm to 700 nm), of the vast electromagnetic spectrum. Some quality attributes and external
and internal defects are more readily detectable in the region outside the visible range. This has
led to considerable research in developing instruments sensitive to a broad band of the electro-
magnetic spectrum and establishing indices of quality for various agricultural and biological
materials. The nondestructive nature of optical methods has made them particularly attractive in
on-line quality evaluation involving large number of samples for processing operations.
An attempt is made here to focus on research work where optical properties are known to be of
interest. The emphasis in the review was placed on those investigations which have yielded prac-
tical results rather than those which have merely employed the optical properties of materials for
hypothetical purposes. A large body of information has been examined on different agricultural
products to gain insight into the methods and techniques that have already been investigated and
*Department ofAgncultural Engmeering. University ofIllinois.Urbana, llbnois b1801. U.S.A.
Recctved 5 Oaober 1983: accepted in rewed form 9 May 1984
209
0021~8634/85/070209+ 33 $03.00/O 0 1985 The Bntish Society for Research m Agnculturai Engmeerrng
210 OPTICAL PROPERTIES AGRICULTURAL AND BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
NOTATION
A absorbance R reflectance
c chlorophyll content, mg/lOO gfw s sorting index
CIE International Commission for s sugar content, Brix
Illumination T transmittance
DLE Delayed Light Emission Y detector response to DLE, V
f fruit firmness, dynes difference
F fluorescence ; angle, ’
aft grade of peel colour
&ii gram fresh weight, g Subscripts
Z incidence i incident
k absorption coeficient, cm- 1 n normal
I thickness of absorber, cm t transmitted
LF logarithmic fluorescence parallel
LR logarithmic reflectance perpendicular
n index of refraction g0 wavelength, nm
OD optical density 620:
PQI pork quality index 1120 etc.
r amplitude coefficient of reflected ray 0 angle, ’
IO=
IO*
IO*
IO' ommunication
loss I@
Fig. 1. The electromagnetic spectrum (Shortley and Williams’)
SGUNASEKARAN ETAL. 211
the possible future options that exist. Optical methods utilizing the ultra-violet, visible, near
infrared and infrared radiation are considered separately as this part of the electromagnetic spec-
trum is of greater consequence to human activities than any other part. Research on using
delayed light emission is also discussed. Investigations employing the X-ray and gamma ray part
of the electromagnetic spectrum have not been included as they are considered to be a separate
area of research.
2. Electromagnetic spectrum
A brief discussion of the electromagnetic spectrum is presented as background information to
give a basic understanding of optical methods employing radiation from different parts of this
spectrum. Radiation is one of the basic physical processes by which energy is transferred from
one place to another. The propagation of radiation through free space is the same for the entire
electromagnetic spectrum. That is, radiation of all wavelengths-from the shortest gamma rays
to the longest radiowaves-travels with the same speed in a vacuum.’ The observed radiations in
300 400 500 600 700

Wavelength, nm
Fig. 2. Relative sensitivity of’the human eye to light ofvariouswavelengths IShortley and Williams’!
Fig. 3. The radiation incident (I) on the surface of a nonabsorbing material is shown here as either rejected (RI or
transmitted (T)
the electromagnetic spectrum are given in Fig. 1. Visible light with a spectral range from 400 to
700 nm (violet to red) constitutes a very narrow band of wavelengths in the total electromagnetic
spectrum. The sensitivity of the eye varies within this narrow visible range and under conditions
of moderate or strong illumination the eye is most sensitive to yellow-green light of 555 nm. The
spectral sensitivity curve Fig. 2 indicates this maximum and the reduced sensitivities at longer and
shorter wavelengths.
3. Light: basic laws and interaction with matter

When light is incident on any material three things generally occur: some of the light will be
reflected, some may be transmitted through the material and some will be absorbed within the
material (Fig. 3). The degree to which these phenomena take place depends on the nature of the
material and on the particular wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum used. Commonly,
the optical properties of a material are defined by the percentage of incident light reflected,
transmitted and absorbed at each wavelength. Conservation of energy requires that the sum of
the reflected (R), transmitted (2’) and absorbed (A) radiation should equal the total incident
radiation (I), so that
Z=R+T+A
Reflection from a smooth, polished surface is called specular reflection or regular reflection
(Fig. 3). The basic “Law of Specular Reflection” states that the angle at which a ray is reflected
from a surface must equal the angle at which it is incident to the surface. “Fresnel Equations”
define the phenomenon of regular reflection. The amplitude coefficients of a reflected ray as given
by these equations are,*
r =(Wl) ’ cos Bi- [(n2/nI)’ -sin28i]1/2

’ (n2/n1)2 cos oi+ [(n2/n1)2 - sin2Bi]“2
cos Bi- [(n2/n1)2 - sin2 6i]1/2
“=Cos 0i+[(n2/nI)2 -sin2 Bi]112
The regular reflectance R= r2 = (rZI+ r2,,). For normal incidence the distinction between the
parallel and perpendicular components vanishes (i.e. r2 = r21= r2,,) leading to
The direction of the transmitted ray is given by “Snell’s Law”,
n2 sin ot=nI sin Bi
and the “Beer-Lambert Law” defines the attenuation of the transmittance of the ray in a
homogeneous, nondiffusing, absorbing medium as
If the surface of incidence consists of miniature bumps (rough surface) the incident light will be
scattered in all directions. The “Lambert Cosine Law”,
S. GUNASEKARAN ET AL. 213
Fig. 4. Regular refecrionfrom a rough surface (Birth’)
Fig. 5. D$?use regular rejecfion and diffuse body reflection (Birth=)
defines the distribution of this diffuse reflectance flux. Since some of the incident rays strike the
rough surface more than once before being reflected (Fig. 4) it would be expected to have a lower
total reflectance than a smooth surface.3
It was commonly believed that the colours of natural objects are seen by means of light
reflected from the surface. Birth4 recognized that the light must be transmitted through the pig-
ment within the cells in order to produce a coloured appearance. The light so transmitted
through the object encounters randomly oriented internal interfaces and is reflected back. A
fraction of this reflected radiation is transmitted back through the initial interface (Fig. 5) and is
named body reflectance.’ The body reflectance is nearly always diffuse and is the most significant
form of reflectance for paints, paper and foods. 5 This phenomenon of random reflection and
refraction at the numerous internal interfaces is called “light scattering”.
In biological materials the body reflectance is of far more significance than the regular
reflectance. Normally equipment for quality evaluation of biological materials measures total
reflectance, which is the sum of the regular reflectance and body reflectance. Hence to measure
the body reflectance as an indication it is necessary to ensure that the regular reflectance does not
predominate.
4. Measurement systems
4.1. Measurement of ligh t
Measurement of reflected and transmitted light is not difficult, however, the absorbed energy is
not available for measurement. An indication of absorbed energy can be obtained by measuring
all the nonabsorbed energy and by applying the principle of energy conservation. A common
expression for absorption is absorbancy, A, defined as
A=log,, I/T
Optical density, a far more commonly used expression, has the same definition but is used for
applications where the transmitted ray is attenuated by both geometrical means (scatter) and
absorption. Transmittance, T, is defined as
T= I,/I
Measurement of transmitted or absorbed energy is more important than reflectance measure-

ments in certain quality evaluation problems (internal colour, defect detection, etc.). Kramer and
Smith6 were the first to apply transmittance spectrophotometry to practical problems in measur-
ing the stage of fruit maturity by making measurements on ethyl ether extracts of macerated fruit.
Norris’ was the first to apply the light transmittance technique to whole intact fruit to indicate
changes in internal colour and to follow maturation of fruits and vegetables. Later this technique
became widely popular for internal quality evaluation.8- ’2 Sarkar and O’Brien’ 3 explained
three approaches to analyse the optical transmittance through a fruit (tomato). The first one was
based on the classical electromagnetic wave theory. Fruits contain several absorbing materials
and application of this theory was more difficult as the number of material boundaries increased.
Moreover, measurement of the material parameters for each composition of the fruit cannot be
very reliable so an accurate prediction of the transmission phenomenon was not possible. The
second approach was based on Kubelka-Munk theory14 which takes the scattering factor into
account. Because of the highly complex nature of the fruit the experimental results did not agree
very well with the equations derived from this theory. However, they observed that a third
approach, called the systems approach, was helpful in analysing the transmitted light by
considering an overall model of the fruit as a complex system.
In general the reflectance data are expressed as a linear scale, i.e. percent reflectance, while
diffuse transmittance is frequently expressed as optical density.3 The advantages of using an
optical density scale are:
(1) the analysis is simpler, i.e. an optical density difference is equivalent to a transmittance
ratio. Differences are easier to compute;
(2) the logarithmic plot permits a wider range of intensities, i.e. a transmittance scale of 1 to
100 is two orders of magnitude, while an optical density scale may cover five orders of magnitude;
(3) there is a linear relationship between optical density and the concentration of an absorbing
substance.
4.2. Establishing quality indices

The success of establishing a valid index of quality depends largely on the appropriateness of
the optical property measured. Powers et al.16 stated the following basic requirements in
selecting the optical property for best results with particular reference to maturity evaluation:
(1) the magnitude of relative measurement should vary as greatly as possible over the full
range of maturation;
(2) the change in the measurement between consecutive stages of maturity should be great
enough to permit precise colour differentiation.
Apart from the above requirements, the nature of the measurement criterion should also be
formulated judiciously so as to permit measurements insensitive to variations in the object size,

shape, glossiness, the light source intensity, sensor sensitivity and amplifier gain. The
measurement criterion has taken various forms and can be grouped into the following four
classes.
(1) Single wavelength measurement-in which the optical property of the object at a
particular wavelength is considered as an index.
(2) Difference measurement-in which the change in the optical property of the object at two
different wavelengths is measured. This is an indication of the average slope of the curves in the
region between the two wavelengths. The region should be chosen so as to obtain maximum
change in slope of the curves representing the measurement. The effects of the object and
apparatus variations are largely attenuated in this kind of measurement.‘6
(3) Ratio measurement-in which the ratio of the optical properties at two different
wavelengths is the chosen criterion. This is, in general, independent of the sensitivity of the
measuring instrument.
(4) Combination measurement-in which any combination of the above categories is used.
For example, Birth et cd.* suggested a criterion of the form (T,,,- T520)/(T620 + T,,,) to predict
the colour of tomatoes.
The following is a review of these procedures in relation to their appropriateness to agri-
cultural and biological materials. A comprehensive list of the most significant investigations
which have employed optical methods is presented in Table 1.
5. Fruits
In general, fruit quality is associated with the development of characteristic varietal flesh and
skin colour. Since these colours change visually during the maturation of fruits, it should be
possible to establish maturity standards on the basis of colours.”
Various fruits exhibit different physiological and chemical changes as they mature. Most
common to all and perhaps the most obvious and significant is the loss of green colour. This
involves the degradation of chlorophyll, resulting in the exposure of the carotenoids giving a
characteristic maturity symptom of yellowing. ‘* Red colours are often observed due to forma-
tion of anthocyanins, as in certain varieties of apples, or to the presence of lycopene, as in
tomato. Table 2 lists the 10 different ripening stages of tomatoes and the corresponding changes
in the various pigments.ls
According to Willstatter and Stoll, 2o in a colloidal solution of chlorophyll the light absorption
bands are displaced toward the red end of the spectrum having its median at 678 nm. Conse-
quently, due to loss of chlorophyll as the fruits mature they exhibit reduced absorbance
(increased reflectance) in the 670 nm region. This has been the single most important criterion in
optically judging the fruits’ quality. *,’ 1’15,2’,22 In cases where skin colour is not a true represen-
tation of fruit quality or would not sufficiently indicate the stage of maturation, internal flesh
colour served as an index of quality. Such measurements were also obtained nondestructively
through optical methods.8,23
5.1. Apples
In apples major changes in spectral characteristics were found to occur in the visible region. As
the fruits mature the percentage of reflectance increases at about 676 nm and greatly decreases
between 400 and 600 nm.“~‘* The reflectance values are low in the ultra-violet region and are
likely to be in error because of the influence of fluorescence, particularly from chlorophyll. In the
near infrared range the reflectance would not change as the water content in the skin is not likely
to change. For maturity indication a ratio measurement, R580/R620 is the best for red varieties of
apples22 and an optical density difference, AOD (740-695 mm) for Golden Delicious, Stayman,
Red Rome and Winesap varieties.24
TABLE 1
Optical indices for various quality evaluation problems in agricultural and biological materials*
Material and Quality evaluation Optical index Indicative substance Correlation of Degree of
leference
description problem established-f measured measurement success f
Fruits
Apples
Delicious Water core OD 7604.8 OD 810 Physical changes in apple Visual rating of cut apple 0.90
tissue
Golden Delicious
Stayman Maturity AOD (740-695) Chlorophyll Chlorophyll 0.96
Red Rome Winesal
Jonathan
McIntosh Maturity R,s,IR,,, Chlorophyll and CIE chromaticity
Red Delicious carotenoids values
Golden Delicious Maturity R,,,-.520 Chlorophyll and carotenoids CIE chromaticity values
McIntosh Physical changes Visual rating

Jonathan Bruise in apple tissue
Golden Delicious
McIntosh Bruise Physical changes

Red Delicious on apple surface
Yellow Delicious Stem and calyx R,,,-8,”
Banana
Cavendish Maturity, firmness and DLE _
sugar content
Blueberries Maturity AOD (74&800) Anthocyanin
Grapefruit
Marsh Fruit relative colour Discolorations Visual rating
Thompson Surface defects caused by defect Visual rating
Lemon Maturity Chlorophyll and Hand sorting 0.99
other pigments
Bearss Surface defects Discolorations Visual rating
caused by defects
Nectarines Maturity Soluble solids and
palatability
Oranges
Hamlin Fruit relative colour Visual rating
Surface defects Discolorations Visual rating
caused by defects
Pineapple Fruit relative colour Visual rating
Surface defects Discolorations Visual rating
caused by defects
Valencia Fruit relative colour R 66" Visual rating
Surface defects R570-600 Discolorations Visual rating
caused by defects
Satsuma Maturity DLE
Papaya Maturity OD550-675 Change in internal Chlorophyll
flesh color cdrotenoids and
soluble solids
Peaches
Elberta Maturity AOD (70&740) Chlorophyll Log chlorophyll
content 0.96
LeGrands Maturity T730/Tsso Soluble solids and
J. H. Hales palatability
Elberta
Rio Oso Gem Maturity ~mJ4a, Red and yellow CIE chromaticity 0.92
M.A. Blake pigments values
Red Skin Maturity Average skin colour Pane1 rating 0.84

Rio Oso Gem Maturity Average skin colour Panel rating 0.76
Ranger Maturity Fruit firmness Magness-Taylor 0.72
punch test
Pears
Michigan 437 Maturity Chlorophyll CIEchromaticity
values
Plums
Prune type Firmness
Prunes
41
Dried, Defects: scab, skin Physical changes Hand sorting 0.83
Santa Clara damage, end crack, in prune surface
side crack, exposed
pit decay
Strawberries Maturity ‘%,oI’L, Percentage of Berries more than 0.80
surface that is red 80% red
Tomatoes
Rutgers Internal colour Lycopene and Colour of 0.95 8
chlorophyll extracted juice
Cal Mart Maturity Red/green ratio Statistically 0.98
72
Cal Ace Maturity OD615 Red/green ratio predicted 0.80
red/green ratio
Castlemart Maturity OD670 Red/green ratio (75% within first 0.84
IO days)
12
Royal flush Maturity OD 730 Red-/green ratio 0.87
Homestead Maturity
Green to ripening AOD(51G600) Chlorophyll
Breaker to red ripe AOD (600 690) Lycopene
TABLE 1
Continued
-0
a
Material and Quality evaluation Optical index Indicative substance Correlation of Degree of
Seference 2
description problem establishedt measured measurement success$
n
-z
Vegetables
Potatoes
Irish Cobbler Internal discoloration: Brown substances
Katahdin hollow heart, blackspot, AOD (7 1O-800) in the vicinity of
greening voids
Differentiate from (&,,a-,,a/ Hand sorting 1.0
soil clods R,,,+w,,)
Sorting from stones and (R 600 - 1300I

soil clods R 1500-2400 1
Diseases and defects:

common scab, gangrene, Physical or
blight, skinspot, chemical changes
R%X-890 Visual rating 0.8
dry rot, greening, brought about by
Bacterial soft rot each defect
Record Diseases: gangrene, Rw- 750 Surface changes and Visual rating 0.9
Dunbar dry rot water loss
Radish
Red Prince Defects: downy mildew Surface off colours
off colours of white,
pink and light purple
Blackspot, soft rot Surface off colours
dull white, green
leaf split Internal white flesh
Cerealgrains
Barley Grain admixture
Corn
Yellow Kernel damage Official method
of damage
determination 0.90
Yellow Gain admixture R,,O-700
Yellow Mould contamination ALF(442-607) Mould spores
oats Grain admixture
Rice Degree of milling Bran on rice
Degree of milling Brown substances Percentage
in the bran surface lipids
Degree of milling Protein and oil on Total lipids
outer layers of rice
We Grain admixture
Soybeans Grain admixture
Wheat Smut content Smut spores Spore count
Smut content Smut spores ~ Spore count
Wheat
Flour, Bran Moisture content AOD (194&2080) Moisture Oven drying
Durum Grain admixture RS10-700
Hard Red Spring Grain admixture J&0-69,
Hard Red Winter Grain admixture B,,, - ,oo
Soft Red Winter Grain admixture R,,,- 700
White Grain admixture Ru,- 570
Egg and meal products
Beef
31
Ground Fat content Fat
72
Ground Fat content R 937 - Rw, Fat Chemical analysis
R,,, + R,,,
65
Egg Blood spots 1565-585 Blood Examination of contents
66
Blood spots AOD (597-577) Blood
67
Fertility T450-800 Chemical changes I Hand sorting -
within eggs after
fertilization
Pork
68
Longissimus Muscle quality log(1/R,,,. m) , OD of Hart extract
70
muscle Muscle quality Scatter coefficient ~ Tof Hart extract
at 800 nm
Miscrilaneous products
Firseeds
75
White Viability 1 Germination
Grass
86
Melle Moisture content Water Oven drying
Meadow Fescue ~ Oven drying
Rye grass clover Oven drying
Sabrina Oven drying
TABLE 1
Continued
Marerial and Quality evaluation Optical index Indicative subslance Correlation of

description problem establishe& measured measurement
Pecan
Stuart AAatoxin L,I’L, Alfatoxin Chemical analysis
contamination contamination
Peanuts
Virginia Maturity AOD (48&510)
Off flavor AOD (480-587) Taste panel
Intact Moisture content AOD (970-900) Oven drying
cotyledons
*For delinmons ofsymbols used m this Table see “Notation”
tThe numbers in this column refer to wavelength in nm at which the measurements were made
fThe decimal numbers in this column are the correlation coetlic~ent of the measurement with corresponding index ofevaluation
TABLE 2
Chlorophyll and carotenoid compositions of “Walter” tomato fruit categorized by absorbance (A) readings* (Watada et
al.19) - _
l- Pigment contenl
Total
Lycopene, p-carotene, y-carofene, e-carotene, b-zeacarotene,
chlorophyll
flccgldKJ fig/@ Pgg,‘& Pcglgf”’ figI&
pglgfbtl
1 13.4 0.7 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.02

? 1I.2 0.7 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.03
5 8.6 0.2 1.0 0.04 0.05 0.03 0.03
4 5.9 0.6 1.3 0.12 0.09 0.04 0.05
5 4.2 2.5 1.8 0.26 0.07 0.05 0.04
6 1.0 10.1 3.1 0.54 0.15 0.08 0.06
7 0.4 16.7 3.3 0.87 0.12 0.17 0.12
8 0.3 22.8 3.7 0.90 0.12 0.21 0.18
9 0.3 34.8 3.1 0.97 0.08 0.42 0.21
IO 0.3 46.7 2.9 l-13 0.11 0.89 0.29
*Awage of three
samples. each containing live tomatoes
Some of the external and internal apple defects were optically detected. Bruising on apples is a
quality defect and is often a major problem in grading operations.25,26 In an earlier investi-
gation, Rehkuglerz5 made use of the surface discontinuities in apples due to bruising as a means
of detecting the presence of bruises. Light reflectance measurements indicated that bruised apple
skin exhibited less average reflectance than an unbruised skin at all wavelengths between 700 and
2200 nm.26 It was thought that reflectance for a bruised surface is less than that for an unbruised
surface due to a combination of cell destruction (fewer rigid cell walls to scatter light) in the
bruise, an altered water-air relationship in the tissue, and a gradual chemical change in the cell
materia1.26,27 A difference in reflectance for wavelengths at 800, 1200 and 1700 nm or ratio of
reflectance (unbruised/bruised) at some wavelength between 1400 and 2000 nm may be useful in
optical bruise detection.
Reid28 studied the typical reflectance properties of apple skin ripe, unripe, bruised, peeled,
calyx and stem (Figs 6 and 7) and concluded that a detector sensitive in the wavelength range
4OCF450nm could be used for bruise detection and one sensitive in the 725-800 nm range for
stem and calyx detection.
Water core in apples is a heat initiated disorder. In the affected tissue water replaces air in
intercellular spaces giving a translucent or water soaked appearance. Birth and 01sen16
developed a rapid nondestructive technique of detecting such defects in Delicious apples. Since
the air spaces are eliminated in the water-cored tissue it scatters less light but transmits much
more than the normal tissue (Fig. 8). At about 800 nm there are relatively few substances in nor-
mal apples that absorb energy so it was considered to be the best wavelength region to identify
water-cored apples. An optical density difference, AOD (760-810 nm) gave the best results. This
measurement has to be changed if apples are subjected to varymg temperature conditions to
allow for the temperature changes in the optical density measurement at 810nm. Table 3
summarizes five different methods for detecting water-cored apples.
5.2. Peaches
One of the earliest works on peaches was by Rood.2s He recognized that there was too much
variation in skin colour to permit a single standard for all varieties and investigated the physical,
90
t 1
Ll
600 750 700 650 600 550 500 450 400 350
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 6. ReJecrance of Red Delicious apple surfaceparameters. A.B, Ripe skin; C,D, bruised cheek; E,F, undamagedJIe&
(Reid-)
-i 60
s 50
t
; 40
L 30
20
IO
0
600 750 700 650 600 550 500 450 400 3 io
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 7. Reflectance of Red Delicious apple surface parameters. A.B. Ripe skin; C,D. stem; E, calyx; F, polished, dewaxed.
wetted; G. half ripe skin (Reid-)
chemical and physiological characteristics of peaches. The following is the list of maturity indices
of peaches in order of their importance: (1) pressure test readings, (2) ground colour of skin, (3)
flesh colour, (4) chlorophyll content of the flesh, (5) titrable acidity of the juice, and (6) percent-
age of soluble solids in the juice. Besides an increase in reflectance in a fairly narrow wavelength
band at 675 nm, Sidwell et a1.2’also reported a transmittance peak at 545 nm for fresh Elberta
peaches. But colour differences among varieties of peaches are likely to cause differences in the
wavelength of peak transmittance, which might not specifically be related to the stage of
maturity. Fig. 9 represents the optical density values from Elberta peaches at four different stages
of maturation. In general, measurement in the 700-850 nm range has been proposed as that band
is fairly stable, insensitive to chlorophyll and correlates well with maturity.21*30 The maturity
index AOD (70&740 nm) yielded very good correlation with eating quality of fruits2’
The value of the transmittance peak ratio T730/T850, equivalent to 0.8 and 0.9 was found to
separate respectively the JH Hales and Le Grands variety of peaches into predominantly mature
4.6 - I
~<“/q, U ,/
/
8 \/
z 3.6 -
0
3.4 -
3.0 I I I
650 700 750 800 E 0
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 8. Optical density curves of a water-cored apple (A) and a sound apple (B) (Birth and 0lser1’~)
TABLE 3
Potential methods of detecting water core in apples (Birth and 01senq6)
Method Measurement
1 Water-core index with K=O,8 OD 760-0.8 (OD 810 nm)
2 Water-core index with K= 1,O AOD(760-810nm)

OD 760+690 nm
3 Optical density ?
i
4 Maturity index AOD (74&690 nm)
Weight
Specific gravity Weight + buoyant force
600 700 600 9

Wavelength, nm
Fig. 9. Optical density curves offour intact Elberta peaches at progressive stages of maturation. 1, Typicalfruit harvested 3
August; 2,17 August; 3.21 August; 4,26 August, tree ripe stage (Sidwell et aL2’ j
and immature groups30 Other reported criteria for judging peach maturity based on skin colour
include: transmittance ratio of 700 and 740 nm,31 reflectance ratio using one wavelength in the
550 to 590 nm region and another in the 600 to 640 nm region,22 R,,,IR,,, for Red Skin, Rio
Oso Gem varietieP2 and R,,,/R,,, for Ranger variety.33
5.3. Tomatoes
It can be judged from the previous pages that skin colour has predominantly served as the
index of maturity of various fruits. However, for fruits like tomatoes to be processed into puree,
juice or canned the internal colour may be far more important than the skin colour. For such
cases optical techniques have been developed to nondestructively determine the internal flesh
colour of tomatoes as a measure of quality.8
100
0.01
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 10. Spectral transmittance curvesfor tomatoes. I, Green; 2, red-green; 3, red [Birth et al.‘)
The light absorption in tomatoes is considered to be due to chlorophyll in green and lycopene
in red fruits.34 Green tomatoes were reported to have minimum transmittance at 670 nm and
this was increased by more than 100 000 times as they matured to the red stage, corresponding to
loss of chlorophyll (Fig. IO). On the other hand, an equivalent relative decrease in transmittance
at 550 nm was observed corresponding to increase in lycopene, the red pigment. Watada et all9
estimated chlorophyll and carotenoid and other pigment contents for whole Walter tomatoes
and classified them into 10 different categories. As observed in Table 2 the average chlorophyll
content decreased from 13.4 ug/gfw to 0.3 ug/gfw as the fruit matured from stage 1 to stage 10.
The lycopenes show an increase from O-2pg/gfw to 46.7 ug/gfw from stage 3 to stage 10. The
other carotenoids show a less pronounced increase. Linear correlations were given for
absorbance readings and pigment content:
AA (710-780 nm) =0.0178+0.0380 chlorophyll
AA (570-780 nm) = 0.604 + 0.0431 lycopene
The measurement Tsz0/T67,, was found to change in the order of 30 : 1 as the tomato ripened
from yellow to full red colour.* The wavelengths 670 and 620 nm were chosen because at the for-
mer the spectral transmittance change is the greatest as the fruit develops more red colour and at
S. GUNASEKARAN ET-AL. 225
the latter the transmittance value is high enough so that an extremely sensitive instrument is not
necessary. Likewise, the ratio T52,,/T545 was chosen for distinguishing externally green tomatoes
with internal amber colour from tomatoes that are green throughout. Combining the above two
criteria a new ratio (Te7,,- T520)/(T620+ T& was proposed to indicate internal colour of any
tomato. This new index gave a very high correlation (O-95) with the colour of the extracted juice.
Based on AOD (510-600 nm), Worthington” separated tomatoes into 10 different ripening
classes. It was noticed that the relative value of the above measurement increased to about 1.9 as
the fruits matured from green to red and then decreased. He attributed the decrease in the latter
stages to the development of internal pink colour.
Light transmittance through an intact green tomato is very difficult to detect. Worthington et
al.,’ ’ in their investigation found over 60% of the newly harvested tomatoes too dense to
measure light transmittance. However, Nattuvetty and Chen” and Chen and Nattuvetty35 used
a high density spectrophotometer with a fibre optic attachment to measure light transmittance
through a small region of an intact fruit. They defined maturity as the number of days required
for a fruit to attain a pre-specified surface colour when kept in a ripening room at 20°C. Optical
densities at 500, 615, 670 and 730 nm were correlated with the ripening rate of tomatoes. The
effects of heterogeneity of the fruits were minimized by taking the average for four observations
around the fruit. A high sorting efficiency for Calmart and CalAce varieties was obtained at
615 nm, for Royal Flush at 730 nm and Castlemart at 670 nm.
5.4. Oranges and grapefruit

Felsenstein and Mano? studied a few surface defects of oranges that are characterized by
change in colour. They reported that within the vicinity of 667 nm there was a difference of at
least 17% in the intensity of light reflectance from the surface of a good orange and one with
blemish. In a more elaborate research Gaffney3’ investigated fruit grade colour and surface
defects like plug, oleocellosis, rots, moulds, windscar, scabs, thorn scratches of the Hamlin, Pine-
apple and Valencia varieties of oranges and Marsh and Thompson varieties of grapefruit. The
wavelength band 550 to 750 nm was sensitive to change in surface colour or nature due to various
defects. A detailed listing of the wavelength bands of interest for individual defects is presented
in Fig. II.
Hmnlh7 omng,
Simulated plug --__
- __--
-_
_--
L-
Lota rust ma
Smooth rmdscor
Thorn scratch
Olroc.llosis
Snsn CObW
-___ - ----______--------__
___
Pmn*aPple orong*
Simulotad plug
Late rust mite
Smooth rindrcar
Eorty rust mite
vota7c1a omng*
Simutotedplup
%r
Loto rust mite
Smooth rmdrear
Edyrust null
Thorn rcrotch
outer mambrone
Gwen cOlo”r
Marsh. Thomrson
Wavelength, nm
Fig. II. Wavelengths suitable for detecting certain defects on Hamlin. Pineapple and Valencia oranges; Marsh and
Thompson grapefruit and Bearss lemons. Solid and dashed lines indicate wavelengths for which defects reflect at least 15%
less and 15% more light than normal fruit respectively. Hatched regions indicate single wavelength regions suitable .for
detecting most defects (GaffneyJ’)
5.5. Otherfruits
Maturity and other quality indices for fruits such as banana,3* blueberries,3g 1emons,‘5*37
nectarines,30 papaya,23 pears,** strawberries40 were also established. In plums, Romani et ~1.~~
observed a general increase in absorption in the 500 to 600 nm region and a decrease in absorp-
tion at 680 nm with increasing maturity. Neither of these changes was found adequate to be a
maturity index.
Optical measurements are also indicative of fruit firmness. For example light transmittance
values at 539 to 587 nm correlated highly with loss in firmness of prune type plum9 and the light
reflectance ratio R,,,/R,,, yielded a correlation of 0.72 with firmness of Ranger variety
peaches.33 The damage and defects of dried prunes such as scab, sidecrack, skin damage, end
crack and exposed pit were optically detected by Burkhardt and Mrozek.” They noticed that
except for skin damage all other defects appeared lighter than the sound prune skin. The reflec-
tance characteristics at 1300, 1700, and 2 100 nm are suitable for sorting dried prunes. If changes
in colour of prunes upon storage is taken into consideration measurements at 1700 nm are the
best index.
6. Vegetables
6.1. Potatoes
Fewer investigations to establish optical quality evaluation standards have been carried out for
vegetables than for fruits. In potatoes it has been observed that the normal optical properties are
modified in consistent ways in the presence of certain diseases and defects.42-44 The optical den-
sity difference at 810 and 710 nm was suggested as a nondestructive criterion to detect hollow
heart in potatoes based on the brown substances in the vicinity of the void.” This measurement
is also capable of indicating other discolorations of potatoes like black spot and greening.
Recently, Porteous et ~1.~~ identified the diffuse reflectance at wavelengths between 590 and
890 nm and the bands near 1100 and 1400 nm as being most significant in detecting a number of
diseases and defects such as: bacterial soft rot, blight, common scab, dry rot, gangrene, greening
and skin spot (Fig. 22). The wavelengths suggested for detecting these defects in their order of
importance are: 650, 710, 1410, 630, 750 and 830nm. Muir et al.‘” in a similar investigation
Wavelength, nm
Fig, 12. Spectral differences between healthy and severely affected areas ofpotatoes. 1, Skin spot; 2, dry rot; 3, gangrene; 4,
common scab; 5, blight; 6, greening; 7, bacterial soft rot (Porteous et al:‘)
SGUNASEKARAN ETAL. 227
I I I I I I I
300 600 900 1200 1.500 1600 2100 2400
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 13. Spectral wflectunce ofpotatoes (I), stones (2) and soil clods, (3) (Story and HoNow~ay4’)
60, I
011
300 400 500 600 700 600
Wavelength,nm
Fig. 14. Comparison of light wflectance from downy mildew (I) and soft rot (2) on radish surface and that,fiom normal
radish surfaces (3) ( GaffneySO)
remarked that diseased tubers indicated a progressively reduced diffuse reflectance for all cases at
shorter wavelengths up to about 800 nm. At wavelengths greater than 1100 nm, where absorp-
tion by water dominates, increases in reflectance were reported due to dehydration in the affected
area. With dry rot, however, simultaneous changes over the whole wavelength range were
observed presumably due to the progressive loss of water as the disease advanced. The
wavelength bands between 590 and 750 nm and the bands near 950, 1150, 1350, 1470 and
1850 nm were found useful in detecting various diseases studied.
The reflectance of light and infrared radiation by potatoes, stones and soil clods offers a
possibility of separating them. Palmera reported that a red/blue ratio, (Rsoo to R900)/(R325 to
R,,,), as a highly successful criterion for differentiating potatoes from soil clods. This ratio was
found to be unaffected by size of the objects and their distance from the sensors. Story and
Hollowayd6 verified this result and investigated the infrared radiation properties of potatoes,
stones and soil clods. Their results (Fig. 13) indicated that potatoes in common with other plant
materials show a higher reflectance over the 600 to 1300 nm region and lower reflectance outside
this region. Accordingly the ratio of the reflectance in the range 600-l 300 nm to that in the range
1500-2400 nm was found to be a more distinctive indicator than the red/blue ratio used by
Palmer.“5 An automatic sorting system was also developed based on this criterion.“’
6.2. Radishes
Optical quality evaluation standards were established to sort Red Prince radishes based on
various defects namely, split, cut, black spot, soft rot, green stem, green leaf, downy mildew, dull
white and off colour.4* The most apparent differences between the reflectance from a normal
radish surface and from the defects were observed at wavelengths below 800 nm. Specifically,
surface cuts, downy mildew and off colours of white pink and light purple were detected at
550 nm and the other defects, black spot, soft rot, dull white, green leaf etc. at 675 nm. Fig. 14
represents the reflectance curves for normal and downy mildew and soft rot infected radishes.
7. Cereal grains
Hawk et aZ.Osreported reflectance characteristics of 12 different grains: hard red winter wheat,
hard red spring wheat, white wheat, durum wheat, white oats, barley, rye, yellow grain sorghum,
yellow soybeans, yellow corn and flax. The different reflectance properties were used in evaluat-
ing grain samples for admixture grain, i.e. the grains other than the primary one. The results
indicate that all the grains have a fairly constant reflectance of 5% across the entire ultra-violet
I
0 ..................................*...’
t
600 hkTh7k7
Wavelength, nm
Fig. IS. Spectral absorption curves of corn. I, Sound corn; 2,15% damage; .?,30% damage (JohnsorP)
._$ 2.0 -
s
z
.k l-6-
B
&
E 1*2-
0
:
z
5 0.8 -
3
E
rc 0.4-
6
B
-1 0 I I I I
0 400 500 600 700
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 16. Spectral$uorescence of sound (I) and mould contaminated (2) yellow corn (Birth and JohnsoP)
TABLE 4
Effectiveness of four optical techniques for separating 20 kernels of corn into two
groups (Sound and mould-contaminated)* (Birth and JohnsoP)
Technique Measuremenl Effecfiveness, %I
I I
Fluorescence ALF(442Z607 nm) 2.5
Total fluorescence LF(visible) 15.0
Transmittance AOD (775.-725 nm) 16.0
Reflectance ALR (675~-750 nm) 21.0
*For defimtions of ,ymbolr m this Table see “Notation”
iI_he tiact~~~ of the contaminated kernels which are classltied as sound, using Ihe 95% hmlt of the
\ound corn
region of the spectrum. The difference in reflectance between grains in the infrared region is small
and the greatest differences occur between 450 and 700 nm. The wavelength bands that could
theoretically be used to separate grain samples from admixture grains are given in Table 1.
7.1. Corn
Johnsons used an absorbance measurement (A,,,- A,,,) in determining heat damaged,
sprouted, frosted, badly ground-damaged, badly weather damaged yellow corn kernels. The
absorption spectra of yellow corn (Fig. Z.5)indicates larger differences between damage groups in
the 650 to 750 nm range than in the 800 to 1000 nm range. However, the latter range was chosen
for measurement to minimize the effect of natural colour differences in the kernels. Quantitative
measurement of light transmission through corn endosperm was applied in separating opaque
and normal kernels5’ The opaque kernels were reportedly more nutritious than the normal
kernels.52,53 According to Paez et c11.,~’the normal kernels allowed up to 0.67% light
transmission (450-560 nm) against essentially no transmission in the opaque type. The kernel
thickness was found to have an effect in reducing the percentage of light transmitted. There was.
however, no difficulty in separating the kernels of different moisture content.
Mould contamination of yellow corn was detected by a nondestructive optical technique
developed by Birth and Johnson. 54 This was based on the fact that the natural fluorescence from
the corn was reduced when moulds were present (Fig. 16). They studied four optical properties,
total fluorescence and the spectral characteristics of fluorescence, transmittance and reflectance.
The best results were reported for a difference measurement of logarithm of fluoresced energy at
442 and 607 nm. Besides, this criterion takes advantage of the change of shape of the spectral
fluorescence curve as a function of mould contamination. Table 4 gives the effectiveness of
different optical techniques they investigated.
7.2. Wheat
Smut content of wheat was also optically indicated by light transmission techniques.55,56
Birth55 observed that the slope of the transmittance curves between 750 and IOOOnm was in
direct proportion to the amount of smut on the wheat sample. Excluding the water absorption
band at 970 nm, optical density difference at any two wavelengths about 100 nm apart in the
above range could be indicative of the total smut content. Johnson 56 investigated five different
methods based on light transmittance, sedimentation, catalase activity, light reflectance and light
absorption. The measurement of AOD @O&930 nm), equivalent to a transmittance ratio
measurement (7’So0/T930) was found to be the best criterion.
Reflectance and transmittance of grain samples do not change greatly with moisture contents7
Nevertheless, the water absorption bands at 760,970, 1180, 1450 and 1940 nm were investigated
for spectrophotometric measurement of grain moisture content.58 The measurement of AUD

(1940-2080 nm) closely predicted the moisture content of ground wheat samples. In general, it
was observed that it should be possible to measure the moisture content of a wide range of
materials using the absorption band at 1940 nm. The main requirement is a uniform thin sample
of l-3 mm thick without interfering absorption bands. For moisture contents greater than 20%
the absorption at 1940 mm becomes difficult to measure so the 970 nm band should give greater
accuracy.58
7.3. Rice
Most of the work with rice kernels reported the use of optical techniques for determining the
degree of milling.50~60 Degree of milling, a measure of the extent to which the germ and bran
layers have been removed from the endosperm, is one of the principal factors in determining the
grade of rice. Extensive milling is required for complete removal of the germ and bran layers
which would consequently result in an increased percentage of broken kernels. Chemical
methods such as that used for estimating percentage loss of phosphorouP’ and fat contenP*
were used as indices for the degree of milling in rice. Stermer et al,59 reported the spectral trans-
mission of rice with various degree of milling. Greater changes were observed at 660 nm and at
850 nm, accordingly the ratio measurement Ts50/T66,, was suggested as the criterion. In another
method, the fact that the protein as well as oil is the greatest in the outer layers of rice was made
use of in establishing a criterion indicative of degree of milling of rice.6o The oil absorption
bands, 928, 1215 and 1725 nm were found to be highly correlated with surface and total lipids.
Higher correlation with total lipids (0.85) than with the surface lipids (0.58) was observed
presumably because the infrared energy penetrated the rice kernel sufficiently to be absorbed by
all the lipids present in the kernel.
Normal rice kernels are vitreous and highly translucent but in abnormal kernels these proper-
ties are impaired to some degree. Beerwinkle and Stermer 63 utilized this translucence difference
between normal and abnormal kernels to sort milled rice optically. With this feature included,
the efficiency of a conventional rice sorter improved by 50 to 70%. StermeP developed objec-
tive measurements of the colour of milled white rice which could be used as an indicator of rice
grade, the degree of parboiling and the extent of starch gelatinization in rice.
.
8. Eggs and meat products
8.1. Eggs
One of the earliest works on eggs was to detect blood spots, the most common defect in eggs.
Brant et ~11.~~identified three absorption bands of blood, at 415, 541 and 575 nm, in the visible
region. Their method of detecting blood spots in white shell eggs was based on the relative
transmittance measurement between 565 and 585 nm (Fig. 17). Though a success rate of 97.5%
was reported the measurement was specific to the colour of the eggshell. Later, Norris and
Rowan applied a similar technique to detect blood spots without regard to shell colour. Based
on the relative absorbance measurements at 577 and 600 nm they could detect 70% of all eggs
having blood spots from 3.2 to 6.3 nm in diameter and 100% having blood spots greater than
6.3 nm in diameter.
Light transmittance properties of eggs in the range 450 nm to 800 nm was investigated to group
eggs according to their fertility. 67 Detectable differences among the eggs were reported in mean
transmittances of the whole eggs yielding an 84% correct classification of fertile eggs. None the
less it was concluded that there was too small a difference and too much variation among eggs to
successfully separate fertile from infertile eggs.
8.2. Pork
Unlike fruits and vegetables pigments are not necessarily the dominant factors influencing the
appearance of meat. Apart from pigments, other factors such as cellular structure, surface
SGUNASEKARAN ETAL 231
60
t
400 500 600 700

Wavelength, nm
Fig. 17. Spectral transmittance cf intact whiteshell eggs. I, Normal egg; 2, egg containing blood spot;3, eggcontaining
bloody white (Brant et aL6”)
roughness, and homogeneity can equally affect the appearance of meat sample.4,68 For example,
there was reportedly no difference in pigment concentration between two different qualities (pale,
soft and exudative and normal) of pork muscle which appear different.68 It was also found that
the myoglobin and haemoglobin selectively absorb light while structural and myofibrillar protein
absorb relatively less light but cause more scattering. This suggests that the general optical
quality standards for meat products should take factors other than pigments into consideration.
Davis et aLps investigated the reflectance spectra of longissimus muscle from pork loins of the
qualities PSE (pale, soft and exudative), normal and DFD (dark, firm and dry). A pork quality
index (PQI) was suggested based on light reflectance measurement at 633 and 627 nm.
PQI = - 1.67 -254 log l/R,,, +258 log l/R,,,
This index yielded a correlation of 0.8 with visual rating of quality. However, they commented
that these measurements involving pigments might be affected by the chemical reactions involv-
ing porcine myoglobin and by other external factors such as bacterial growth and oxidation. The
light scattering properties of muscle, independent of the above factors, was suggested as a
desirable alternative for evaluating muscle quality. Following that, Birth et ~1.‘~ researched the
possibility of establishing light scatter coefficients as a measure of pork muscle quality. They
concluded that the relationship between the distribution of the radiation in the muscle and the
muscle qualities can be used as a basis for determining the meat quality of pork loins. Scatter
coefficients and absorption coefficients were computed in the 550 to 1150 nm range. High
correlation was obtained between the scatter coefficient at 800 nm and the transmittance of Hart
extract.”
8.3. Ground beef

Norri?’ studied the light absorption characteristics of ground beef samples. Of the observed
absorption bands at 540, 575, 640 and 760 nm, he selected the one at 760 nm for estimating fat
content of ground beef. The other absorption bands were rejected as they are closely related to
light absorption by blood. A fat absorption band at 928 nm was reported by Massie.‘= From the
spectral reflectance data (Fig. 18) he observed that the change in the slope of the curves at 940 nm
301 I I I I I I I
800 850 900 950 IO00
Wavelength, nm
Fig. 18. Reflectance curves ofground beef containing33,3% far (1) and 183% fat (2) (Massie”)
indicated a change in fat content with a high degree of success. He proposed an empirical
formula,
% fat=M+N(R,,, -R,,,)I(Rw +R,,,)
where M and N are constants.
9. Miscellaneous products
Kramer et a1.73 investigated the light absorption properties of Virginia type cured, unroasted
peanut halves without skin. Optical density difference, AOD (48CL510 nm) was found useful as a
peanut maturity indicator. Due to the absorption band at 445 and 470nm of the pigment
xanthophyll in immature peanuts the above measurement values were higher for immature pea-
nuts than for mature peanuts. They also found good correlation between AOD (48&587 nm)
and the taste panel rating of off-flavour in peanuts. Beasley and Dickens“’ indicated that oil
extracted from peanuts could also be used as a maturity index. They reported that oil from
mature peanuts generally transmitted more light at about 425, 456 and 480 nm than oil from
immature peanuts. Apart from xanthophyll, D-carotene and lutein were also suggested as
influencing the spectral properties which are related to maturity. Moisture content of whole
intact peanut cotyledons were also spectrophotometrically determined.s8 It was reported that
AOD (970-900 nm) predicted the peanut moisture content within + 0.7%.
The light transmission and reflectance characteristics of white fir seeds were studied to obtain
an index of seed viability.25 In the reflectance spectrum of 500 to 2500 nm range significant seed
to seed changes were observed only around 660 nm. A sorting index (S) was assigned based on
the measurements around 660 nm,
s= Rae-f&o
R 660
Table 5 presents the different S values and the percentage germination in 5 weeks. These
results indicate the possibility of optically detecting the viability of seeds. Though the mechanism
involved in this procedure was not understood it was presumed that phytochrome reaction which
is active at about 660 nm may be an influencing factor. A viability indicator of delinted cotton
seeds was also developed based on an optical density difference measurement.76*77 The AOD
(720-790 nm) was reported to be useful but was found to be cultivar dependent.‘* Later it was
indicated that the condition of the seed coat may have influenced the OD measurements.”
Tyson and Clarkso developed a technique to determine the allatoxin contamination of Stuart
variety pecans. They used sound pecan halves soaked and incubated in chloroform aflatoxin
solution. With a fluorescence ratio measurement on the bottom side of the pecan halves they
detected aflatoxin contamination of at least 20 p.p.m. with a 90% confidence. The measurement
criterion was R,,,/R,,, or R,,,/R,,,. Aflatoxin contamination of Iranian pistachio nuts was
also optically indicated. Dickens and Weltye’ observed that nuts emitting bright greenish yellow
(BGY) fluorescence under long wave ultraviolet (LWUV) light had a high probability of
aflatoxin contamination. Tests by Farsaie et aL8* with 360 nm light source clearly indicated that
BGY fluorescent nuts can be separated from other normal nuts. Based on the ratio of fluorescent
energies at 490 and 420 nm a photometer was developed to sort the aflatoxin contaminated
nuts.83
McCIure84 studied the browning reaction of tobacco. The browning in tobacco leaves is
usually associated with physical damage and hence low market value. In the region of 425 to
700 nm there was an increase in absorption between 500 and 700 nm due to the increase in brown
pigments in the affected portions of leaves. However, the characteristic feature of the absorption
spectrum of intact leaves which relates to browning is the increase in absorption at 575 nm.
Based on the assumption that the optical density was a linear function of the concentration of
brown pigmentation, he found that the model describing the reaction will range from zero order
to higher depending on the thermal treatment.
Norris and Harts8 determined the moisture content of lima beans with intact cotyledons by
optical methods. Diffuse reflectance measurement at near infrared wavelengths were also used in
estimating moisture content of four grass species. 85,86 Three reflectance ratio measurements,
Rr,,,lRr~~o, Rr4JRr66a~ and R,,,,IR,,,, were found to give good correlations with the
moisture content of whole grass samples. Generally, the fresher and leafier specimens gave better
correlations and there was no significant difference between the spectra of different grass species.
Due to the small sample size and small sample surface exposed to radiation, single measurements
of reflectance at selected wavelengths estimated moisture content accurate to f22.0%. It was
suggested that hundreds of independent readings be made to obtain a useful measurement.
TABLES
Five week germination results for white fir seeds (Miles and Moehle’“)
I I I
Range of Percentage Torul
sorting index. S germinated sample size
Overallprminatlonpercentage:60%
10. Delayed tight emission

Strehler and Arnold*’ discovered that green plants which have been irradiated give off light for
a considerable period of time after illumination. This phenomenon is known as delayed light
emission (DLE). They explained it as a reflection of certain early reactions in photosynthesis
which, by virtue of their reversibility, are capable of releasing a portion of their stored chemical
energy through a chemiluminescent mechanism, including at least one enzymatic reaction.
Preliminary measurements of the colour of the emitted light indicated that it corresponded
closely to the colour of the fluorescent light. However, it was identified that the luminescence is
more closely related to photosynthesis than to fluorescence. 87 The similarities between the
luminiscent reaction and photosynthesis include:
(1) the nature of temperature dependence;
(2) the rate at which the reactions are destroyed by ultra-violet light;
(3) the range of saturation intensity;
(4) the compounds that inhibit the reactions.
Later investigations*8**a suggested an interpretation of the physical process leading to DLE in
terms of semiconductor theory. The emitted light has been shown to be due to an electronic
transition between the first excited singlet state of chlorophyll and the ground state.so Contrary
to Strehler and Arnold’s interpretation that luminescence phenomena is a consequence of the
reversibility of some of the early enzymatic photosynthetic reactions it was proved to be
nonenzymatic.9’~92 But evidence is presented to support the contention that the later stages of
emission are of an enzymatic nature.g2
10.1. Factors ufjkting DLE

The emitted light is affected by temperature, excitation intensity, wavelength of excitation,
excitation area, duration of illumination, time after illumination, successive dark and light
periods and amount of chlorophyll in the plant material. The temperature dependence of DLE
was reported to be extremely complex.92~93 However, this is not a major problem with regard to
agricultural products because of the relatively small influence on the DLE in the range of
temperature encountered with them.94
Fig. 19 shows the broad activation spectrum which produces DLE from intact green peaches.
This explains the strong dependence of DLE on the wavelength of excitation. The peak of DLE
intensity is observed at about 680 nm. A similar response was reported for oranges.93 The
intensity of DLE bears a direct relationship with the excitation intensity until saturation. Beyond
the saturation level additional illumination has little effect in producing an increase in DLE inten-
sity. 93-95 The higher the illumination intensity, the shorter the time required for saturation.94
Ltr%eTk
Wavelength of excitation, nm
Fig. 19. Action spectrum of green peach measured 2 s after illumination (Jacob et aLs4/
S.GUN ASEKARAN ETAL. 235
Fig.20. Decay curvesof chforelfa luminescence at two different temperatures (Streher and AmoM’)
With bananas Chuma et aLs3 observed that maximum DLE intensity was reached for an
excitation time of 2 s or less. They also found that excitation times up to 60 s degraded the DLE
intensity but for times longer than 60 s the DLE intensity was constant.
After a certain duration of excitation DLE is observed over varying periods of times. At room
temperature, DLE is observable from 0.01 s to several minutes. 87 However, the intensity of DLE
decreases with the time after excitation, known as decay of DLE. The decay curves of chlorella
luminiscence (Fig. 20) indicate that the lower the temperature, the faster is the decay. In mature
oranges just the opposite trend was observed. s4 The decay was also found to vary with
chlorophyll content. s3 The effect of continuous illumination after dark periods has also been
investigated.87’93
11. Quality evaluation based on DLE

Delayed light emission is probably produced by all vegetables, fruits and plant materials under-
going photosynthesis and can be related to the chlorophyll concentration or apparent greenness
e I 1 I I
1 20 40 60 80 100 120
Time, 5
Fig. 21. DLEfor lemons of different chlorophyll content. 1, Darkgreen; 2. light green: 3, silver; 4, yellow (Jacob et al.9’)
Colour grade
Fig. 22. Relation between colour grade and DLE intensity of bananas during ripening. (dark period= IO min; illumination
intensity= 5500 lx; exciting time = 4 s; illumination area= 4.4 cm”; decay period= 0.7s) (Chuma et aLs’)
of the product. s4 The importance of chlorophyll with regard to judging the quality of fruits and
vegetables has been previously discussed. Hence, there is a very definite possibility of applying
DLE measurements for quality evaluation of plant materials. Jacob et aLs4 reported that DLE
related to apparent chlorophyll concentration has been observed in apple, apricot, banana, bell
pepper, nectarine, olive, onion, orange, peach, persimmon, plum, pomegranate and tomato.
The DLE measurements offer two advantages.over the spectrophotometric methodss4
(1) Illumination need not be spectrally well defined; this permits wide choice and simple design
of the exciting source.
(2) Illumination and measurement are not simultaneous, i.e. illumination can be removed in
time and position from measurement.
Another convenience is that beyond a saturation level additional illumination has little effect in
producing an increase in DLE intensity; therefore, small changes in illumination will not interfere
with quantitative measurement of DLE.
Jacob et ~1.~’observed large differences among four commercial colour grades of lemon (Fig.
21). Based on a similar observation they sorted tomatoes under field conditions. Chuma and
Nakajis6 observed an almost linear relationship between the chlorophyll content of tomatoes
and the DLE intensity. They sorted the green tomatoes with high accuracy whereas the sorting of
red stages were only partly successful. Chuma et aLs3 applied this technique in automatic selec-
tion of Satsuma oranges. They developed a relationship between the chlorophyll content (c) and
the detector response to DLE (Y)as,
Sorting efficiencies of 545,90, 83.8, 85-7 and 100% were reported for five colour groups ranging
from dark green to orange. The surface treatments of oranges such as brushing, brushing and
waxing had negligible effects on DLE suggesting difficulty in detecting such treatments.
Measurements of DLE on Cavendish banana indicated that DLE decreased with ripening and
bananas just beyond optimum ripening had only a trace of DLE." The grade of peel colour
(gpc) of bananas has been related to DLE as
y= 10.9 e-o.72 9pc
Fig.22 indicates that maturity of bananas can be determined with DLE measurement. Other
quality attributes of banana such as sugar content and firmness were also related to DLE. The
DLE decreases with sugar content(s) according to
Y= -0.773 s+3.26
and increased with firmness (f> according to
Y=(l.40fx lo-6)-3.50.
12. Discussion and conclusions

Optical properties of agricultural and biological materials vary widely and are dependent upon
many factors. Quality evaluation based on these properties requires accurate optical property
values. For any particular substance under a particular set of conditions precise values can
probably be obtained by careful measurements. However, good estimates can be made for many
materials on the basis of the investigations already reported. These optical property estimates
would permit a quick evaluation of various properties that have served as quality indices and
help in the selection of those most suitable for any particular application.
In general the nondestructive quality evaluation of agricultural and biological materials focus
on three major aspects:
(1) maturity and/or ripeness evaluation;
(2) composition analysis;
(3) intenal and external defect detection.
For maturity evaluation the interaction of various pigments and their change as the product
matures is taken as the prime indicator. The importance of chlorophyll in this regard has been
adequately discussed. Moisture and fat or oil content and other compositions have been
analysed based on certain absorption bands in the electromagnetic spectrum. For example,
water has five prominent absorption bands at 760,970, 1190, 1450 and 1940 nm and oil at 928,
12 15 and 1725 nm. Defects, both external and internal, on the other hand, have been found to
affect the normal properties of interaction of light with products in consistent ways. Hence,
defect detection is accomplished by comparing optical properties of a normal product with those
of the defective product.
The wide variety of size and shapes of agricultural products makes most commercial instru-
ments difficult to use for measuring optical characteristics since special geometric designs are
needed. With the advent of fibre optic technology the problem has been partially overcome.
There are numerous instances of fibre optics applications in measurements of biological
objects. 35,54,63.83.s7 Chen and Nattuvetty35 reported the application of fibre optics as having
the advantages of detecting light of extremely low intensities by providing a good light seal and
eliminating the effects of variations such as fruit size and distance from the source. This has also
been found to be very useful in high speed operations. In addition, new sources of light have also
been explored. Low power lasers can be of great help because the laser beam is highly direc-
tional, coherent, very bright and has a well defined beam diameter. Also these properties make
the laser beam more adaptable to optical manipulations compared to other conventional sources.
There are recent reports of laser applications in quality detection of biological products.70,s8,gg
The spectrophotometric techniques so far investigated relied heavily on empirical data and
statistical analyses. For a better engineering approach the interaction of light with agricultural
products should be analysed analytically. Chen and Nattuvetty 35 indicated that if a mathemati-
cal model can be developed to represent the distribution of diffused light in the fruit, the effects of
various parameters can be studied more thoroughly.
Many agricultural products may be considered as turbid or translucent,loO i.e. incident light
energy does not traverse the object in a rectilinear manner but is scattered from its original direc-
tion of travel. Thus not only absorption of energy within the sample, but also scatter and
changes in the direction of travel of energy as it traverses the object, must be considered. Accord-
ing to Birth’OO light scattering is the primary process for creating diffuse reflectance which
enables us to observe a nonmetallic object from any direction, regardless of the direction of
incident light. Mathematical description of scatter, diffuse reflectance and diffuse transmittance
are extremely valuable in providing a means of obtaining insights into the interaction between
light and biological materials where multiple scattering predominates.5 The Kubelka-Munk
theory has been widely accepted for analytical analysis of body reflectance.“’ The Twersky
approach of mathematical analysis of absorption and multiple scattering of biological suspen-
sions resulted in more accurate descriptions of biological materials from the visible and near
infrared wavelengths.5 Sarkar and 0’Brien13 presented an analytical model describing optical
transmission phenomena based on spectrophotometric measurements on tomatoes. The dis-
tribution of light transmitted through agricultural materials, the effects of distance between
the light source and detector, and the size and location of the absorber have also been
investigated.35’s8
Even though there have been recent advances in analytical approach and mathematical
modelling of interaction of light with agricultural and biological products, further investigations
are required to gain a better understanding of the optical characteristics and for facilitating more
precise and accurate measurements. Hopefully an automated, computerized quality evaluation
procedure can eventually be developed. In addition to further spectrophotometric studies,
properties such as DLE of green plants should be more thoroughly investigated as potential
indicators of quality. The advantages of DLE measurements over the spectrophotometric
measurements might help in the development of simpler and less expensive instrumentation for
quality evaluation of agricultural and biological materials.
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J. agric. Engng Res.

Optical Methods for Nondestructive Quality Evaluation of

Literature which reports on optical methods of nondestructive quality evaluation of agricultural

*Department ofAgncultural Engmeering. University ofIllinois.Urbana, llbnois b1801. U.S.A.

Recctved 5 Oaober 1983: accepted in rewed form 9 May 1984

300 400 500 600 700

3. Light: basic laws and interaction with matter

r =(Wl) ’ cos Bi- [(n2/nI)’ -sin28i]1/2

The direction of the transmitted ray is given by “Snell’s Law”,

n2 sin ot=nI sin Bi

Fig. 4. Regular refecrionfrom a rough surface (Birth’)

Fig. 5. D$?use regular rejecfion and diffuse body reflection (Birth=)

Measurement of transmitted or absorbed energy is more important than reflectance measure-

4.2. Establishing quality indices

formulated judiciously so as to permit measurements insensitive to variations in the object size,

McIntosh Physical changes Visual rating

McIntosh Bruise Physical changes

Red Skin Maturity Average skin colour Pane1 rating 0.84

Sorting from stones and (R 600 - 1300I

Diseases and defects:

Marerial and Quality evaluation Optical index Indicative subslance Correlation of

*For delinmons ofsymbols used m this Table see “Notation”

1 13.4 0.7 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.02

1 Water-core index with K=O,8 OD 760-0.8 (OD 810 nm)

2 Water-core index with K= 1,O AOD(760-810nm)

600 700 600 9

AA (710-780 nm) =0.0178+0.0380 chlorophyll

AA (570-780 nm) = 0.604 + 0.0431 lycopene

5.4. Oranges and grapefruit

Technique Measuremenl Effecfiveness, %I

*For defimtions of ,ymbolr m this Table see “Notation”

for spectrophotometric measurement of grain moisture content.58 The measurement of AUD

400 500 600 700

PQI = - 1.67 -254 log l/R,,, +258 log l/R,,,

8.3. Ground beef

10. Delayed tight emission

10.1. Factors ufjkting DLE

11. Quality evaluation based on DLE

and increased with firmness (f> according to

12. Discussion and conclusions

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