Investigation of electrical conductivity and bioactive quality during ohmic evaporation process of Apple juice

In this study, the evaporation of apple juice was completed with ohmic heating to eliminate some problems with conventional evaporation methods. Ohmic evaporation (OE) was performed at different voltage gradients (13–17 V/cm) for determining electrical conductivity (EC), Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), and the total phenolic content (TPC) changes. The voltage gradient affected the total consumed energy, average power, and specific water removal ratio (SWRR) values (p <.05). The shortest time was obtained at 17 V/cm, while the longest time was 13 V/cm during the OE process. The EC value varies between 0.19–0.85 S/m for the voltage gradients. EC and current values increase with temperature until boiling starts, then decrease, and the EC value tends to increase slightly. The TPC value ranged between 587.4–716,4 mg GAE/100 g and was higher at OE than in the conventional process. As a result, the OE process preserves the TPC value of apple juice better while shortening the processing time. Novelty impact statement: The ohmic evaporation process is an alternative method that can be preferred in concentrating fruit juices with consuming less energy and obtaining higher quality products. In addition, considering the phenolic distribution, it was determined in this study that the products were better preserved in the ohmic evaporation process. It is predicted that it will provide important data for both pilot and industrial designs for the establishment of any ohmic evaporation systems.