Selection of Suitable Test

Procedure for Texture Analysis

Manpreet Singh
PhD Student
Department of Processing & Food Engineering,
PAU, Ludhiana.
 A scientist can easily get bewildered while
facing the problem of developing a
suitable procedure for measuring the
textural properties of a particular food.

 Where should one start from…..?

 Number of factors should be considered before
setting up a new test procedure, otherwise a
good deal of money and time will be wasted.

 These factors can be used to select a suitable

instrument. If one already has a UTM the same
procedure can be used to select which test
principle is most appropriate for that particular
food and which attachments are used to perform
the test.
 Factors to be considered
 Instrument or Sensory
 Nature of Product
 Purpose of Test
 Accuracy Required
 Destructive or Nondestructive
 Costs
 Time
 Location
 Instrument or Sensory
 Instruments are generally preferred
because they are believed to be
 more reproducible,
 Use less time
 Utilize a minimum of labor

There are times when sensory methods

are the only way in which adequate
information can be obtained
 Nature of Product
Kind of material affects which type of instrument to
be used
 Liquid,
 Solid,
 Brittle,
 Plastic,
 Homogeneous,
 Heterogenous,etc.

Most tests on solid or near solid foods use some form of

uniaxial compression

Sophisticated tests on viscosity use some form of

rotational motion
 Purpose of Test
 Whether the test is to be used for quality control, for
setting legally binding official standards, for product
development or for basic research?

 Essential feature of the selection process

 In some cases a single point measurement is adequate

where one is usually prepared to sacrifice sophistication for
the sake of rapidity like for routine quality control
purposes.

 In other cases multi point measurement is needed where

difficult problems are handled in research laboratory or in
new product development which require sophisticated
instrumentation.
 Accuracy required
 Greater accuracy is obtained as the number of
replications is increased.

 Larger sample size gives a result closer to the

true mean than a small sample size, hence fewer
replicate tests are needed to obtain a given
degree of accuracy. But a larger sample size
usually means that higher forces are needed,
and the force capacity of the instrument may be
exceeded.

 When the spread of values between individual

units is needed, it is preferable to use a small
sample size and run a large number of
replicates.
 Sometimes there is large inherent
variability (even 20% or higher) from unit
to unit in the same sample lot.

 When working with a new commodity, it is

advisable to run a preliminary test to
ascertain the degree of inherent variability
and to establish how large a sample size
and replications are required do give
desired confidence in the data.
 Since inherent variability is normal for most
foods, the primary consideration is to look for
the instrument that can perform tests rapidly.

 A higher degree of precision is a secondary

consideration because there is a little point in
attempting to measure some textural parameter
to a precision of 1% when replicate samples
may vary by 20% or more, especially when extra
time is required to obtain the high degree of
precision.

 It is usually preferable to replicate a 1 min test

five times that to run a more precise 5 min test
 Destructive or Nondestructive
 Destructive tests ruin the structure and
organization of the sample, rendering it
unsuitable for repeating the test.

 Nondestructive tests leaves he food in

condition so close to its original state that
the test can be repeated and give the
result as the first time.

 Both techniques have had their successes

and failures.
 Majority of the textural parameters of food are
sensed in the mouth and mastication is a
destructive process, it seems logical that
destructive tests should be the predominant type
to be used on foods.

 Nondestructive tests are sometimes effective,

and they offer the advantage that the same
piece of food may be repeatedly tested, thus
eliminating variations in geometry from piece to
piece.
 Costs
 How much money can be spent on the test?

 This includes the initial cost of instrument, and

maintenance and operating costs.

 The instrument that uses the chart paper has an

operating cost which is not found in the
instrument in which the dial reading is taken.

 Does the instrument need spare parts and what

is their availability and cost?

 Is the instrument used occasionally or

frequently?
 Labour cost?

 A simple instrument can be operated by

unskilled or semi-skilled personnel
whereas sophisticated instruments need to
be operated by a qualified person.

 Fixed cost of automatic instrument is more

as compared to a simple instrument but
may cost less per test because of reduced
labour requirement and less chance of
making errors.
 Time
 How much time can be spent on the test?

 Routine quality control tests need an instrument

that gives results rapidly.

 In contrast, some tests in the research

laboratory may be so sophisticated that the
amount of time required to obtain reliable data
is not of great consequence.

 Research needs may require measuring a

number of textural parameters, which will take
more time than a one-point measurement.
 Location
 Where will the instrument be operated?

 Any instrument can be used in a clean dry

laboratory.

 Instruments used in plants may need to

withstand steam, water, dust, vibration, and
other hazards that render some instruments
unsuitable.

 Instruments using chart, complex electronic

systems or computers are likely to suffer
damage in steamy atmosphere of a processing
plant unless specially designed to withstand poor
environment.
 Eliminate Unsuitable Tests
 Some test principles are obviously unsuitable for
the commodity that needs to be tested and
should be eliminated from consideration.

 For example: extrusion test is unsuited for

crackers and bread, puncture test works poorly
on most brittle foods, cone penetrometer test is
unsuitable for fibrous materials such as meat or
raw vegetables, a snapping test will not be
effective for flexible or fluid materials.

 Sometimes geometry of the sample may impose

limitations
 Preliminary Selection
 The next step will narrow the field to the most promising two or three test
principles.

 It is advisable to observe what type of test principle people use in sensory

evaluation of textural quality by this one can get good clues for the type of
objective test.

 The test principles that should be considered are

 Puncture
 Deformation
 Extrusion
 Penetration
 Cutting-shear
 Snapping
 Torsion

Try out the instrument and continue use if it gives satisfactory results, if it
fails to give satisfaction its use should be abandoned.

Sometimes none of the established procedures give satisfactory results, in

that case researcher should have the confidence to develop a new test
procedure or instrument that is suitable for the purpose.
 Final Selection
 By this time the number of principles should
have been reduced to a small number.

 Now one should test each of the remaining

principles over the full range of textures that will
normally be encountered.

 If any principle proves to be ineffective, abandon

it. In this case refining the test is not going to
help because an inappropriate test principle is
being used.
 Refine Test Conditions
 The final step is to standardize the test
conditions such as sample size, test cell
dimensions, force range, speed of travel of
moving parts, chart speed, temperature,
etc.
 Several variations of test conditions should
be tested to find out which gives the best
resolution between different samples.
 e.g.a small deforming force generally gives a
better resolution in deformation tests than a
high force.
Some of the questions that should be addressed
 Does sample size affect the test result?
 Does the textural property change slightly or
greatly as the temperature changes?
 Does the rate of compression affect the result,
i.e. is the product strain rate sensitive?
 Is the product anisotropic?
 If the product is anisotropic then it must always be
presented in the same direction.
 How uniform is the product?
 A larger sample size or more replicate tests are
needed if the product is not uniform.
 If the texture vary consistently across the length,
always take the sample from same location.
 Preparation of the sample
 Adequate sample preparation is an
important element in food texture
measurements.

 Problems with sample preparation

sometimes impel the researcher to use a
particular test principle or instrument.

 The sample selected should be

representative of the lot from which it has
been drawn.
 Some useful tips….
 A cork borer is suitable for cutting out cylinders. Make sure the
borer is kept sharp. Apply a light uniform pressure when cutting
because an uneven diameter is obtained if the pressure is not
steady.

 A sharp knife is useful for cutting many foods. A back and forth
sawing motion under gentle pressure gives better control of
dimensions.

 A small saw with very fine teeth is useful for cutting hard fracturable
materials to size. Use saw blade 6” long with 32 teeth per inch.

 A wire cutter is good for shaping adhesive foods such as soft

cheese.

 A circular cookie cutter is helpful for cutting dumbbell shapes

suitable for a tensile test.

 A box in conjunction with sharp knife, a small saw or a wire cutter

helps in cutting samples to a standard length and cutting uniform
cubes.
 Some foods cannot be shaped….
 It is impossible to cut the head of lettuce, a
peanut, or a potato chip to a standard geometry
without destroying the integrity of the sample as
a whole.

 In these cases, one should select units of as

uniform shape and size as possible.

 If possible a non-destructive test should be used

for these foods because the same unit can be
repeatedly tested as it undregoes the
experimental treatments while the geometry
factor remains constant.
 Calibration
 In the past, texture measurement was often considered
to be satisfactory so long as it gave consistent results at
one location but this attitude is no longer adequate.

 Calibration is becoming a matter of increasing

importance to ensure that the same quality product
receives exactly the same measurements no matter
where it is being tested.

 A strong effort should be made to standardize every

aspect of test to ensure that results are comparable
between laboratories.

 A written protocol should be developed giving every

detail.
 The main problem in standardizing many instruments is
he friction between the moving parts of the test cells
and the slip in the rotational viscometers.

 In a single instrument, the friction may vary from test to

test for several reasons:
 Working parts may be bent, twisted, dented, or otherwise
misaligned during the test.
 Frictional force is not constant throughout the working stroke.
 Particles of food, especially skin and fibers, may jam between
the moving parts causing a temporary increase in friction.
 Liquid coming from the food may act as a lubricant, causing a
temporary decrease in friction.
 Food material can build up on the working parts and increase
the friction if these are not thoroughly cleaned after each test.

 Degree of error caused by friction cannot be

standardized. This is compelling reason to give
preference to the test cell geometries in which there can
be no friction between the parts of the test cell.
Thanks