One-Way Degassing Valve Design, Function and Application in Coffee Packaging

The purpose of this study is to gather information relating to the one-way degassing valves used within the coffee industry in order to improve upon current designs. This will be achieved through studying the opening/closing properties of commercial valves, as well as using a model system to elucidate the effects of valve components on these properties, as a function of pressure, rate of pressure change, and temperature. The study will also investigate flow behavior of different food grade sealing fluids within the model valve system, as a function of pressure and temperature. Finally, the study seeks to analyze the overall effectiveness of the degassing valve in maintaining coffee quality in selected packaging systems. This will involve measurement of select volatile compounds, freshness measures, found within the headspace of the coffee, then correlating/validating these measures to consumer acceptance through sensory evaluation.

Faculty Supervisor:

Loong Tak Lim

Student:

Jessey Cowell

Partner:

O2i Ltd

Discipline:

Food science

Sector:

Agriculture

University:

University of Guelph