MEASUREMENT OF CO2 SOLUBILITY IN TOMATO SLURRY USING MANOMETRIC METHOD

An experimental apparatus was built to measure CO2 solubility for both tomato slurry and water at different pressures and temperatures. Water measurements were used to evaluate the efficacy of the designed system. The relationship between solubility and equilibrium CO2 pressure was determined and then Henry's constant was established as a function of temperature for predicting the CO2 solubility within tomato. It was demonstrated that the CO2 solubility in water measured using the designed system was always lower than published data, however this difference was less than 5% in all cases. Measured CO2 solubility in tomato slurry was significantly lower than in water; it increased linearly with the increase of CO2 partial pressure. Finally, the value of Henry's constant for CO2 was determined for the tomato slurry as a function of the liquid temperature. The result will be used for the measurement of CO2 gas solubilization/release in tomato flesh because of variation of the CO2 partial pressure taking place around the produce during hyperbaric storage.