Honey - Sweeteners: Nutritional Aspects, Applications, and Production Technology - page 132

table 5.8 Dielectric properties at Various honey Compositions at 21°C and 2400-Mhz Frequency

penetration
Depth
(cm)

honey
Composition

temperature
(°C)

absorptivity
(N/cm)

Conductance
(S/m)

Loss
Factor

Loss
tangent

relectivity
(%)

Honey 21% 59 0.25 3.98 1.85 13.5 0.23 60

Honey 50% 22 0.42 2.43 1.24 9.2 0.42 44

Blend honey
+ sugar
(20% + 20%)

51 0.27 3.71 2.00 14.7 0.29 58

Blend honey
+ sugar +
HFCS
(20:16:4%)

44 0.29 3.45 1.81 13.2 0.30 56

Source: Adapted from Guo, W. et al., J. Food Eng ., 97, 2, 2010. Guo, W. et al., J. Food Eng ., 102, 3, 2011. With
permission. Guo, W. et al., J. Food Eng ., 107, 1, 2011. With permission.

table 5.9 Dielectric properties of honey (Clove) at Different Dilutions, 21°C temperatures, and

240-Mhz Frequency

honey
Dilution
(%)

temperature
(°C)

penetration
(cm)

absorption
(N/cm)

Conductance
(S/m)

Loss
Factor

Loss
tangent

relectivity
(%)

5 75 0.23 4.40 1.16 8.68 0.12 63

25 64 0.25 4.10 1.98 14.88 0.24 62

55 35 0.32 3.07 2.45 18.29 0.52 54

75 12 0.54 1.84 1.04 7.80 0.64 36

Source: Guo, W. et al., J. Food Eng ., 107, 1, 1-7, 2011. With permission. Guo, W. et al., J. Food Eng ., 102, 3,
209-216, 2011b. With permission.

5.11 CrYStaLLIZatION

Honeysometimestakesasemisolidgranulatedformknownas“crystallized”whenoneofthe
main sugars, glucose,precipitatesoutofthesupersaturated solution,becomingglucosemonohy-
dratebywaterlossesandhavingthesolidbodyofacrystal(Gleiter,Horn,andIsengard2006).
Thetendencyofhoneytocrystallizedependsonfactorssuchasglucosecontent,moisturelevel,
andothercompositionalsubstancesofthehoney,includingsugars,minerals,acids,andproteins.
However,crystallizationcanalsobestimulatedbyanysmallparticlesexistinginthehoney,such
as dust, pollen, bits of wax, propolis, and air bubbles. All these possibilities are related to han-
dling, processing, storing, and the type of honey (Assil et al. 1991). The temperature of bottling
and the kind of container may also have an impact on crystallization. Temperatures of bottling
at104°F-130°F(40°C-60°C)reducescrystallizationsigniicantlybecauseofthecrystalsdissolv-
ingandexpellingincorporatedairintothehoney.Filteringunderpressureinluencessomenuclei
(undissolvedglucosecrystalsandpollenparticles)andeliminatespotentialcrystallization.
Someresearcherstrytopredictthetendencytocrystallizebyapplyingratiosofglucose/water
(e.g.,ratiosof<1.7indicatehoneythatwillstayliquidforalongtime,andratios>2.1showquick-
crystallizationtendencies;Doner1977).Ahighpercentageoffructosecauseshoneytoremainin
a liquid condition for a signiicant period of time. Thus, honey at various fructose/glucose ratios
playsasigniicantroleinthecrystallizationprocess,whichcouldbepreventedbystoringhoneyat
temperaturesbelow52°F(10°C)andbyavoidingmoistureabsorption.
Fermentation problems in honey depend on the initial count of microbes, the time and tem-
perature of storage, and the moisture content. For example, honey with <17% moisture avoids