Modeling the inactivation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium in juices by pulsed electric fields: The role of the energy density

This study groups together pulse electric field variables such as electric field intensity, pulse repetition rate, treatment time, and electrical conductivity of food in a single integrated energy density parameter and correlate it with the inactivation rate of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium. A continuous bench scale PEF system (OSU–4H) was used to treat juice samples with the combinations of 5 electric field strengths and 5 pulse repetition rates. Nonlinear survival curves were modeled by numerically solving a differential equation by the Runge-Kutta method. The developed model successfully described the survival kinetics of the involved pathogens. The model was validated with different juices and PEF treatments and demonstrated that it was able to satisfactorily predict the experimental data as well as data from literature. These predictions suggest that the model is suitable for precisely estimating the inactivation rate of foodborne pathogens of concern in juices by PEF processing. •This study modeled microbial inactivation by PEF using an integrated energy density.•The developed model was validated with data obtained from different sources.•The model precisely estimated inactivation rates of foodborne pathogens in juices.•This study provides valuable information for PEF system manufacturers and users.