Comparative analysis of estimated shelf life, approaching accelerated aging methods

The aim of the research was to compare the shelf life of fruit smoothies, obtained by two different accelerated aging methods. An accelerated shelf life test (ASLT) was conducted, and various quality indicators were measured during this time, such as: pH, titratable acidity, colour, total aerobic count (TAC) and sensory analysis. The test was performed on smoothie beverages purchased from Romanian market for 24 days, the samples being stored at three different temperatures: 5°C, 10°C and 15°C. The analysis of the quality parameters showed that the pH, titratable acidity and the measurement of colour suffered a minor value modification, while the TAC number increased as the storage temperature increased. The results of the research were analysed using Arrhenius equation and Q10 Rule. The TAC changes followed an apparent first-order kinetics, their rates and activation energies were estimated from the experimental data (as a plot of temperature vs time). The fruit smoothies had an estimated shelf life of about 57 days (at 5°C) and 50 days (at 7°C) using the Arrhenius equation and an estimated shelf life about 49 days using the Q10-Rule, after extrapolating the data to real temperature conditions.