Comparative study of hexanal as a dip and electrospun nanofiber mediated vapour treatments on enhancing the shelf life of pears

Hexanal slows down the ripening process in fresh produce by inhibiting the activity of phospholipase D, thereby increasing their shelf life. This study focused on comparing the single time exposure and continuous exposure of post-harvest of ‘Anjou’ and ‘Bartlett’ pears to hexanal by dipping or fumigating to enhance their shelf life. Continuous exposure of hexanal was achieved by developing a hexanal encapsulated fiber (HEF), which releases hexanal vapor due to the increased humidity (962% RH) in the container headspace as a result of respiration. The fruits were stored at cold storage (02C) conditions and compared with their capacity at normal room temperature (202C). Fruit parameters such as physiological loss of weight (PLW), firmness and total soluble solids (TSS) showed only minor differences between hexanal treated and untreated fruits. Between the two varieties ‘Anjou’ exhibited higher values than ‘Bartlett’, although it was minor. However, when the fruits are visually evaluated, the main aspect of consumer preference, HEF treatments had a better appeal in both varieties and in both conditions. ‘Bartlett’ responded better than ‘Anjou’ even in cold storage conditions, suggesting that there are varietal differences in their response to hexanal. Both hexanal treatments helped color retention and reduced fungal infection during under the storage conditions tested.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author