Current Concepts in Engineering Research and Technology Vol. 3

Pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment is considered an important non-thermal method in food processing. However, despite extensive laboratory-scale studies demonstrating its potential for cell membrane permeabilisation, there is still limited pilot-scale evidence on its effectiveness under continuous processing conditions, particularly regarding its impact on extraction efficiency, energy consumption, and downstream pulp handling in sugar beet processing. The aim of this chapter was to evaluate the impact of high-electric-field pulses on sugar extraction from sugar beet strips during continuous pilot-scale extraction. Fresh sugar beet strips were subjected to high-voltage exponential pulses in a continuous-flow PEF system, followed by diffusion extraction, pressing, and drying. The effects of PEF on cell structure, juice yield, and quality parameters such as °Brix, sucrose content, and purity were evaluated. The results indicate that sugar beet strips can be efficiently extracted at moderate temperatures (35–50 °C) when subjected to PEF pre-treatment. The sugar extraction yield of PEF pre-treated samples ranged from approximately 98.5% to 99.8% for extraction times of 30 and 70 minutes at 50 °C, respectively. In comparison, untreated samples exhibited lower sugar extraction yields (92.5% at 50 °C, 30 min; 94% at 50 °C, 70 min). Pressing of PEF pre-treated extracted pulp was more effective than pressing pulp extracted thermally at 70 °C. Drying of PEF pre-treated extracted pulp was also faster than that of pulp from thermally extracted samples. These findings demonstrate that the PEF technique is an energy- and time-efficient method for continuous sugar beet processing.