Abstract
Effects of dropping and vibration received during distribution process on the volatiles accumulated in satsuma mandarin fruit were studied. Gas chromatograms of volatiles from extracted fruit juice were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA). Results obtained are as follows:
(1) Gas chromatography gave ten major peaks of volatile components within 30 minutes of retention time. Of these, ethanol is the most predominant, accounting for 80% of the total peak area, followed by acetaldehyde.
(2) In dropped fruit, volatile components such as ethanol, acetaldehyde, and others are accumulated. The same tendency is also observed in vibrated fruit. However, the accumulation in the fruit is not so appreciable as that in dropped fruit.
(3) Gas chromatograms were analyzed by the PCA, in which peaks from 1 to 6 on the gas chromatogram were used as independent variables. Consequently 80% of total information of the gas chromatogram data can be interpreted by the first (Z 1) and the second (Z 2) principal component.
(4) The first principal component indicates the amount of volatiles while the second one shows the relative contribution of each component.
(5) Dropped and non-dropped fruits are clearly discriminated between in the plane with axis of Z 1 and Z 2. Also, fruit dropped 30 times can be distinguished from fruit dropped less than 20 times. However, there were no differences between vibrated and non-vibrated fruits.
(6) The effect of dropping on the volatiles of fruit juice is more significant than the effect of vibration.
