Equipment

Lloyd LRX universal testing machine

• Measurement of compression and tensile forces in any mechanical tests with the precision of 0.01%, speed range of 0.1-1000 mm min-1, force range of up to 2.5 kN and deformation dimensions of up to 750 mm.
• Testing of mechanical properties, including strength of any material.
• Mono-axial tensile strength and compression testing of any samples.

Examples of use:

• Analysis of the modulus of elasticity of plant and animal tissues. Fatigue analysis of bones. Flow and creep analyses of solid materials.
• Measurements of foodstuff textures. Adhesion measurements. Strength measurements of textiles.

Contact Acoustic Emission Detector (CAED)

• Instrumental measurement of texture of apples (including crispness).
• Measurement of acoustic emission counts and firmness of apples in puncture test
• Quality control of fruits for processing and consumption fitness.

Examples of use:

• Analysis of the food additives impact on apple texture. Analysis of plant tissue fracture processes.
• Consumption quality control in specific stages of apple production and trade. Analysis of texture changes during storage. Optimisation of the harvesting date and storage methods for apples.

R/S Plus rheometer

•  Measurements of viscosity and determination of flow characteristics of liquids and soft solids in the viscosity range of 0.0015-124,000 Pa·s at a temperature range from -20 to +200°C.
• Can be applied to study fruit and vegetable products: jams, pomaces, oils, sauces and non-food materials, e.g. greasesand oils.

Examples of use:

• Determination of the relation between coagulation rate and viscosity of biopolymer solutions; testing of rheological properties of starch.
• Determination of viscosity of fruit juices following the addition of various texturing agents, observation of changes in viscosity of technical lubricants at various temperatures.

Laboratory acoustic emission (AE) recording station

Studies of fracture processes and strength analyses.
Measurements of the acoustic signal during mechanical deformation of materials.
Measurement of event counts, energy and average amplitude with spectral
response characteristics in audible and ultrasound ranges of materials during their
mechanical destruction.
Examples of use:

• Analysis of fracture processes of various materials, including biomaterials.
• Consumption quality control in specific stages of crops production and trade. Nondestructive analysis of changes in the texture of fruits and vegetables during storage. Optimisation of harvesting dates and storage methods.

AFS acoustic firmness sensor for fruit and vegetable

• Non-destructive quality assessment of fruits and vegetables, e.g. apples, tomatoes, pears, etc.
• Firmness index.
• Quality control of fruits and vegetables.

Examples of use:

• Monitoring of changes in biological materials during maturation.
• Non-destructive analysis of changes in the quality of fruits and vegetables during storage. Monitoring of disease and damage development. Optimisation of harvest dates.

Spatial-temporal speckle correlation station (BIOSPECKLE)

Quality control of fruits, vegetables and other biological materials.

• Measurements of specular image dynamics of any material.
• Recording of specular image stills (max. resolution: 640 x 480 pixels) with the use of a He-Ne laser and CCD camera of up to 60 fps.

Examples of use:

• Monitoring of changes in biological materials during maturation.
• Non-destructive analysis of changes in the quality of fruits and vegetables during storage. Monitoring of disease and damage development. Optimisation of harvest dates.

Sensory analysis stations (4 items)

• Quality control of food products.
• Sensory analysis of food products (QDA) in controlled conditions by trained stuff.

Examples of use:

• Impact of storage or additives on sensory characteristics of fruits and vegetables and other food products.
• Quality control of food products. Classification of food products.

ANSYS v11 FEM (finite-element method) modelling software

• The software for FEM calculation and simulations of mechanical properties.
• Modelling.
• Strength calculations, linear and non-linear problems, flow.

Examples of use:

• Modelling of mechanical properties of materials, transport and flow processes.
• Estimation of structural elements strengths.

MICROTEST 200N Tensile stage mechanical microtester for soft plant tissue

• Measurements of forces of up to 200 N and deformations of up to 20 mm in tensile strength and compression tests of thin samples with simultaneous video recording of microscopic image of deformed samples.

Examples of use:

• Microscopic analysis of deformation processes of soft plant tissues. Sample deformation process imaging. Modelling of deformation processes.
• Determination of material strength. Determination of material constant values.