GLOSSARY: CHAPTER 3

FOOD SYSTEMS
_____________________________________________
EXPLORING FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
PETER S. MURANO
Adiabatic saturation process heated air flows past food in a drying operation, with the
air supplying the heat of evaporation to dry the product, with no change in enthalpy
Amphiphilic molecule substance that contains both a hydrophobic and a hydrophilic
region in its structure
Bound water type of water existing in a tight chemically bound situation via water-ion
and water-dipole interactions; does not exhibit typical properties of water
Calorie the amount of heat necessary to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1
Celsius degree
Colloidal dispersion mixture of colloids within a dispersing medium, typically water
Colloid small food particle (such as a protein or polysaccharide molecule) that disperses
throughout the food system without dissolving
Compounds two or more elements chemically bonded together in definite proportions by
weight
Conduction heat transfer due to molecular motion of heated particles
Convection heat transfer caused by the movement of a heated fluid from hot regions to
cold
Elements simplest type of pure substance that have mass and cannot be broken down into
something else
Emulsifier surface-active compound that promotes the formation of emulsions between
water and fatty or oily compounds
Emulsion colloidal dispersion of two liquids, usually water and oil, that are immiscible
Entropy measurement of randomness in a system
Foam two-phase system of a gas dispersed phase within a liquid continuous phase
Food system dispersion containing two phases: a continuous phase and a dispersed phase
Free water lightly entrapped water and easily pressed from food matter; removed by
drying foods
Functional properties physical and chemical properties of food molecules that affect
their behavior during formulation, processing, and storage of the foods
Gas state in which matter is spread out the most to occupy available volume, because
intermolecular attractions are at a minimum
Gel a two-phase system having liquid dissolved in solid phase
Glass transition temperature temperature at which a change in the physiochemical state
and the mobility of the water and polymer molecule constituents of a food occurs
Heat transfer manner in which heat energy is transported from a foods surroundings to
the surface and interior of the food
Heterogeneous matter is matter in which individual components can be visually
discerned and may be distributed evenly
 Homogenous matter is matter that is of uniform composition throughout
Hydration process by which water molecules surround and interact with solutes by
acting as a solvent
Hydrophobins fungal proteins that can produce aerated emulsions with the potential to
act as fat replacers in foods
Latent heat type of heat input that results in a change of state (e.g. solid to liquid) rather
than a change in temperature
Liquid physical state in which intermolecular attractions between molecules is lessened
such that liquid matter maintains a fixed volume but adjusts to the shape of its container
Matter substances that take up space and have measureable mass
Micelles clusters of molecules in which the hydrophobic groups are directed away from
the water while the polar groups are exposed on the external surface
Microbubbles miniature gas bubbles of less than 50 microns diameter in water; when
incorporated into food systems such as tri-phasic emulsions, may create unique sensory
and functional properties
Micrometer unit of measurement; 1 micrometer = 10-6 meter, or 0.000001 meter
Mixture two or more substances are combined physically rather than chemically
Moisture the absolute amount of water present in a food
Nanometer unit of measurement; 1 nanometer [nm] = 10-9 meter, or 0.000000001 meter
Periodic table of elements in chemistry the organization of all atomic elements into a
table based on atomic symbols, atomic numbers and atomic masses
Plasticizer substance that, when added to a polymer food system, lowers the glass
transition temperature; can be used to make solid foods less rigid, more flexible
Radiation occurs when heat is transferred directly between objects without an
intervening medium
Sensible heat type of heat input that results in a change in temperature
Sol- the opposite of a gel; a solid dispersed in a liquid
Solid physical state in which matter maintains a fixed volume and shape, due to strong
intermolecular attractions
Solubility maximum amount of solute that dissolves in a specified volume of solvent at a
specified temperature
Solutes particles that dissolve in solutes as either solids, liquids, or gases
Solutions homogenous mixtures in which one substance (solute) is dissolved in another
(solvent)
Sorption isotherm plot that indicates the water activity at which a food is stable,
allowing predictions of the effect of changes in moisture content on water activity
State diagram stability map of different states and phases of a food as a function of its
solids content and temperature
Structural water also called adsorbed water; water that associates in layers via
intermolecular hydrogen bonds around hydrophilic food molecules
Suspension mixture in which one type of food matter is suspended in another and contain
particles of solid matter that are large enough that they separate and settle out from the
rest of the mixture as time passes; not a stable, uniform mixture
Water activity measure of the availability of water molecules into microbial, enzymatic,
or chemical reactions; used as an index to food shelf life