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In this study, the effect of essential oils of dill in 4 levels of 0, 250, 500 and 750 µl/L in some physicochemical properties (moisture, acidity and pH), color index (a*, b* and L*), microbial (total count, Coliform, E Coli, mold and yeast) and sensory properties including color, flavor and texture of sun dried raisins during storage time was investigated. The results of statistical analysis of the data showed that during storage, the moisture and  indexes of b* (blue to yellow) and a* (green to red) and L* (brightness and darkness) of samples decreased significantly, but these properties with increasing amounts of essential oil of dill in the solution increased (p<0.01). Also during storage, with increasing the amount of dill essential oil, the acidity decreased and the pH increased (p<0.01). The results of microbial experiments showed that during storage, with increasing the amount of essential oil, the total count and coliforms decreased, which was significant in treatments containing 500 and 750 µl/L. The number of molds and yeasts also increased during the storage times and decreased with the amount of dill essential oil (p<0.05). According to the results of sensory evaluation, with increasing the amount of dill essential oil up 500 µl/L, the score of flavor and texture increased, but with further increase of the amount of essential oil caused decreased the flavor score compared to the control sample (P <0.05). Based on the results obtained of this study, the use of 500 µl/L of dill essential oil for storage of sun dried raisins, is recommended.

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In this study, 23 local genotypes of sour cherry from collection in Meshkin Dasht-Karaj in terms of physical and chemical characteristics including weight, flesh to core ratio, firmness, total soluble solids, dry matter content, titratable acidity, pH, flavour index, respiration rate, color indices of fruits and juices (L*, b*, a*, Hue and Chroma) and their correlations were examined. The results showed that all genotypes had significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) in terms of the studied characteristics. Based on the correlations in the color indices, a* index alone can be used to evaluate the red color differences of various genotypes. According to the results, genotypes of KB-100, KB-450, and KB-213 with suitable characteristics such as weight (>2.8 g), flesh to core ratio (>8.5), flavour index (>9.5) and acidity (<1.75%) are more suitable for fresh consumption and genotypes of KB-232 and KB-247 with suitable weight (>3.7 g), dry matter content (>15%) and respiration rate (<9000 mg CO₂/kg.hr) are more applicable for processing. Also, genotypes with high acidity (>3%) such as KB-157, KB-121, KB-234, and KB-152 are more suitable for pickling and fruit roll-up processing. Genotypes with high dry matter content (>21%) and intense redness (a*<9 for skin and a*<16 for fruit juice) such as KB-136 and KB-449 are more suitable for the production of powder, dried sour cherries, syrup and nectar. Late harvested genotypes with firmness (>6N) such as KB-343 and KB-353 are also recommended for compote and jam processing, respectively.

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In this study some physical and geometrical properties of 11 superior apricot genotypes were determined. These properties such as respiration rate, fruit dimensions, perimeter, surface area, volume, compact factor, geometric mean diameter, projected area, shape factor, circularity, length to width ratio, length to thickness ratio, and length to mass ratio were measured at harvesting moisture content ranging from 75.19 to 87.67 %. Then the correlation among average values of the attributes was performed and the genotypes were classified using principal component analysis (PCA). The results showed that all the genotypes had significant differences in terms of all the studied attributes (P<0.01). There was a significant and positive correlation between fruit length and weight and fruit length and moisture content. Fruit shape factor and compression factor showed a positive and significant correlation, while these attributes had negative and significant correlations with circularity. This study showed that Iranian apricot genotypes could be discriminated by differences in their geometrical characteristics using principal component analysis. Based on the PCA results, the first two components account for the most of the variation in the data (91%) and five distinct groups were observed. Overall, the results of this study can be beneficial for the design of equipment for harvesting, transportation, separating, packaging, and processing of apricot fruit.
 

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Concentrations and profiles of 15 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) priority Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) of six different edible oils consumed in Iran markets (oils of olive, sesame, coconut, sunflower, frying and blend oil) were studied. The evaluated edible oils in the present study have not previously been analyzed concerning their contents of PAH compounds. PAHs of 207 edible oil samples were determined and quantified by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography with Spectrofluorometric Detector (HPLC/FLD). The results revealed that the highest content of total PAHs was in coconut oil group (46.8 µg kg^-1), followed by blend oil (22.48 µg kg^-1), frying oil (20.67 µg kg^-1), sesame oil (19.92 µg kg^-1), olive oil (18.4 µg kg^-1) and sunflower oil (17.6 µg kg^-1). The light PAHs (Naphthalene, Acenaphtene, Phenantherern, Antrathene, and Fluorene) had the highest portion of PAHs concentration. Benzo[a]pyrene and PAH4 contents (Benz[a]anthracene+Chrysene+Benzo[b]fluoranthene+Benzo[a]pyrene) were ND-1.32 µg kg^-1 and 0.14-9.2 µg kg^-1, respectively; coconut oil had the highest content. In general, the highest values of Benzo[a]pyrene and PAH4 were not higher than the maximum allowable values of 2 and 10 in any sample, respectively. However, due to the significant content of total PAHs in some vegetable oils, such as coconut oil, it is necessary to determine the limits and evaluate it in the national standard and regulations of the country.