engleski

Influence of moisture content on physical and mechanical properties of almond (Prunus dulcis cv. Fra Giulio Grande)

Almond (Prunus dulcis – formerly classified as Prunus amygdalus or Amygdalus communis) is small nut-bearing tree which grown in Europe mostly in the regions with a Mediterranean climate. Today, almonds are one of the most popular nut crops and the most extensively cultivated nut species in the world. As almond kernels have a high content of fatty acids, oil and protein, almonds can be significant for human nutrition and health (Bliss, 1999). Production of almond in Croatia has a long tradition on the Adriatic coast where are good agroclimatic conditions for its production and almonds are widely used in many bakery and confectionery products in Croatia. The physical properties of almond nuts and kernels, like those of other grains and seeds, are essential for the design of equipment for handling, harvesting, processing and storing the grain, or determining the behaviour of the grain for its handling (Baryeh, 2001). Physical properties of numerous grains and seeds have been determined by many researchers. Several researchers determined physical properties of different almond cultivars, such as Ferragnes and Texas cultivated in Greece (Nanos et al., 2002), Taşbadem cultivated in Turkey (Aydin, 2003), Guara cultivated in Spain (Valverde et al., 2006) and Nonpareil cultivated in California, USA (Ledbetter & Palmquist, 2006). In Croatia, almond nut cracking is usually carried out manually or with homemade cracking machines. Damage occurring during cracking is among the major causes of quality reduction of almond kernels. The percentage of the damage depends on mechanical force applied to the nut, rotational speed of the cracker, thickness of shell and shape of the nuts, number of sizing grades and efficiency of sizing (Özdemir & Özilgen, 1997). The objective of this study was to investigate some physical and mechanical properties of one of the most popular almond cultivars in Croatia, Fra Giulio Grande, whose origin is region of city Bari in Italy. These properties are, namely: dimensions, mass, volume, equivalent diameter, sphericity, bulk density, true density, porosity, projected area, static coefficient of friction on three different surfaces and cracking forces.

Almond nut ; Almond kernel ; Dimensions ; Gravimetric properties ; Frictional properties ; Cracking forces

nije evidentirano