Journal of Food Processing & Technology

Abstract

Studies on Respiration Rates in Coccinia grandis (Ivy Gourd) at Different Temperatures

T. Sushma Rani, C. V. Kavitha Abirami and K. Alagusundaram

Ivy gourd is one of the indigenous vegetable grown in India. The edible part of the ivy gourd is fruit and are mostly used for culinary purposes and also consider as a nutritious vegetable. Though it is a nutritious vegetable, the shelf life of ivy gourd is only 3-4 days in room temperature and 7-8 days in refrigerated conditions. The research maturity index and respiration rate are important in designing a packaging material for extending the shelf life at different storage conditions. Measurement of Respiration rates were carried out by conducting experiments at different temperatures of 10, 15, 20, 30 and 40°C. The respiration rates were calculated as the rate of release of CO₂ relevant to the rate of O₂ consumption of ivy gourd. The CO₂ production and O₂ consumption is maximum at higher temperature of 40°C. The O₂ concentration decreased from 19.5 to 10.41 percentages and the rate CO₂ release increased from 0.60 to 19.33%. The predictive models were developed for calculating the CO₂ release rate and O₂ consumption rates.