• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.31-38
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• 2013

If the time-temperature indicator (TTI) experienced a different temperature than the accompanied packaged food, influenced by heat transfer between the TTI, package, and ambient air, TTI would incorrectly predict the food quality changes with temperature. Temperature distributions of a finite slab with different sizes, representing beef packaged with TTI, were estimated by the finite element method (FEM). The thermal properties of the beef and TTI, such as heat capacity, density, and heat conductivity, were estimated from the relevant equations using their chemical compositions. The FEM simulations were performed for three cases: different locations of TTIs on the beef, different thicknesses of beef, and non-isothermal conditions of ambient air. The TTIs were mounted in four different locations on the beef. There was little difference in temperature between four locations of the TTI on the package surface. As the thickness of the slab increased, the temperature of the TTI changed faster, followed by the corner surface, as well as middle and bottom parts, indicating the possible error for temperature agreement between the TTI and the slab. Consequently, it was found that any place on the package could be selected for TTI attachment, but the package size should carefully be determined within a tolerable error of temperature.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.448-457
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• 2012

The predictive ability for off-flavor development and quality change of ground beef was evaluated using a microbial time temperature indicator (TTI). Quality indices such as off-flavor detection (OFD) time, color, pH, volatile basic nitrogen (VBN), aerobic mesophilic bacteria (AMB) counts, and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) counts were measured during storage at 5, 10, 15, and $25^{\circ}C$, respectively. Arrhenius activation energies (Ea) were estimated for temperature dependence. The Ea values for TTI response (changes in titratable acidity (TA)), VBN, AMB counts, LAB counts, and freshness, which is defined based on OFD time for quality indices of ground beef, were 106.22 kJ/mol, 58.98 kJ/mol, 110.35 kJ/mol, 116.65 kJ/mol, and 92.73 kJ/mol, respectively. The Ea of microbial TTI was found to be closer to those of the AMB counts, LAB counts, and freshness. Therefore, AMB counts, LAB counts, and freshness could be predicted accurately by the microbial TTI response due to their Ea similarity. The microbial TTI exhibited consistent relationships between its TA change and corresponding quality indices, such as AMB counts, LAB counts, and freshness, regardless of storage temperature. Conclusively, the results established that the developed microbial TTI can be used in intelligent packaging technology for representing some selected quality indices of ground beef.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.590-594
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• 2018

We developed a time-temperature indicator (TTI) that rapidly determines whether frozen mackerel Scomber japonicus has thawed during its distribution. Our TTI was made from filter paper capable of absorbing mackerel exudate that was soaked in a 20% citric acid solution at pH 4.0 and then dried. The dried absorbent paper was cut and attached to blue litmus paper with a 2 mm overhang. The fixed litmus paper was covered with a polypropylene film and sealed. The indicator was placed inside a polyvinyl vacuum package containing the mackerel sample. The vacuum-sealed packaged was frozen at $-20^{\circ}C$ for 24 h. After freezing, the color change and time dependence of the indicator were observed at room temperature ($25^{\circ}C$) and demonstrated the utility of this TTI for rapidly determining whether frozen mackerel underwent thawing during distribution.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.41-48
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• 2018

A printable time temperature integrator (TTI) consisting of oxygen indicator and cover films with various oxygen permeability was developed. The printing ink contained methylene blue (oxygen indicator) which changed in color during storage. $TiO_2$ and glycerol for UV-activation of TTI and zein and ethanol for printing performance were also contained in the printing ink. The cover film on the ink was employed to control the color change rate and temperature dependency (Arrhenius activation energy, $E_a$) by using the different films (PE, PET, OPP, and LLDPE). The film properties were varied by annealing. TTI was produced by silk screen printing. As a result, the color change rates were different for the cover films, being the highest in TTI with LLDPE, followed by OPP, PE, and PET. The rate decreased with increase in the cover film thickness. The $E_a$ was the highest in TTI with LLDPE, followed by OPP, PE, and PET. The $E_a$ did not change with the cover film thickness. The annealed PVC and PET film were lower in oxygen permeability than the unannealed ones, indicating the lower color change rate.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.91-94
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• 2018

We develop a time-temperature indicator (TTI) that can determine whether thawing of fish and other fishery products has occurred during frozen storage. A polypropylene tube with an internal diameter of 3 mm was prepared and cut to a length of 14 to 20 mm. One end of the tube was thermally sealed and 0.1% acetic acid was injected into the other end; the tube was then frozen at $20^{\circ}C$. Then the open side of the frozen tube was blocked by sinking the tube into a 10% gelatin solution. The tube was attached to a polyvinyl packaging bag along blue litmus paper and the bag was put into a freezer at $-20^{\circ}C$. After freezing, the bag was removed to an ambient temperature of $20^{\circ}C$, and the time dependence of the color change of the litmus paper was observed. The color changed from blue to red, with the length of the red region increasing with time. Our TTI can be used as a part of a visible detection system and the detection program can conduct the elapsed time analysis on the length of the red region of the litmus paper indicating the degree of thawing. Thus, the TTI is a useful tool in the temperature management of frozen fish and fishery products.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.439-447
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• 2013

Time-temperature integrators (TTIs) are simple and cost-efficient tools which may be used to predict food quality. Enzymatic TTIs are devised to indicate food quality in the form of color alterations from green to red, based on the cumulative impacts of temperature and time period on the enzymatic reactions. In this study, the quality of ground beef patties was investigated for the parameters of pH levels, color, VBN, water holding capacity, and total microbial counts, depending on various storage temperatures (5, 15, and $25^{\circ}C$). TTIs were attached to the surface of the ground beef patties in order to evaluate the degree of correlating colorimetric changes with the determined quality parameters. Through the Arrhenius equation, activation energy and constant reaction rates of TTI, VBN, and total microbial counts were calculated as to observe the relationship between enzymatic reactions of the TTI and food spoilage reactions of the ground beef patties. VBN and total microbial counts were already increased to reach decomposition index (VBN: 20, total microbial count: 7-8 Log CFU/g) of meat at middle stage of storage period for each storage temperature. Although activation energy of TTI enzymatic reactions and food spoilage reactions of the ground beef patties were similar, the change of TTI color was not a coincidence for food spoilage at $5^{\circ}C$ and $15^{\circ}C$ of storage temperature. It was suggested that TTI should be designed individually for storage temperature, time, type of meat, or decomposition index of meat.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.598-603
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• 2012

Beef qualities which can be properly predicted by time-temperature integrator (TTI), a chromatic indicator, were selected in terms of its similarity of temperature dependence between beef qualities and TTI, denoted by Arrhenius activation energy ($E_a$). The high similarity is required to afford accurate prediction. A devised enzymatic TTI based on laccase (an oxidase), which catalyses the oxidation on 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) producing color development, was applied. The factors of beef quality, such as volatile basic nitrogen (VBN), pH, color (CIE $L^*$, $a^*$), Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF), Pseudomonas spp. count, and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) count were considered for the selection. $E_a$ (55.48 kJ/mol) of the TTI was found to be similar to those of the beef qualities (all referred) in the order of LAB count (53.54 kJ/mol), CIE $a^*$ value (61.86 kJ/mol), pH (65.51 kJ/mol), Pseudomonas spp. Count (44.54 kJ/mol), VBN (67.98 kJ/mol), WBSF (40.67 kJ/mol), and CIE $L^*$ value (33.72 kJ/mol). The beef qualities with more similar $E_a$ to that of the TTI showed less difference between real and TTI predicted levels. In conclusion, it was found out that when applying TTI to food packages, their $E_a$ similarity should be checked to assure accurate estimation of food quality levels from TTI response.

• Journal of the korean veterinary medical association
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• v.49 no.10
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• pp.605-609
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• 2013

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.229-234
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• 2010

The applicability of a commercial enzymatic time-temperature integrator (TTI) for monitoring spoilage of ground beef was investigated under isothermal storage condition at different temperatures. The volatile basic nitrogen (VBN) value was used as a spoilage index for ground beef. The time taken to reach the spoilage of ground beef stored at 4, 10, 15, 20, and ${25^{\circ}C}$ were 168, 114, 60, 48, and 24 hrs, respectively. However, these quality losses of beef were not coincided with the endpoints of the three different C-type TTIs (C-1, C-4, and C-7). In order to match the TTI response to the quality loss of beef, some ingredients such as enzyme and substrate solutions were extracted from C-1TTI and remixed with different amount of them in the tubes to constitute the modified TTIs. The responses of the modified CM-1 TTI were very close to the quality loss of beef stored at 20 and ${25^{\circ}C}$, but not at other temperatures tested. The response of the other modified CM-2 TTI was only matched to the quality loss of beef stored at ${15^{\circ}C}$. Therefore, systematic kinetic studies of food spoilage and the TTI response are required to apply the TTI as a quality indicator for a specific food.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.25-29
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• 1999

Time-temperature indicators (TTI) from three different companies obtained and were attached to food packages materials to evaluate degree of their color change according to storage time and temperature. Five temperature (-10 -5, 0, 5 and 10) was selected to represent standard freezing, refrigerating and room temperature, and evaluated performance by color change based on magnitude of color change and hunter system (L, a, b). Response end point was measured and recorded to find characteristic of each indicator. Comparison and discussion were conducted for accuracy and precision of each time-temperature. More research should be conducted at variable temperature and with various food to determine applicability of TTI on various storage condition.