Gas exchange in fruits related to skin condition and fruit ripening studied with diode laser spectroscopy

• Published in: Journal of biomedical optics 2016-12, Vol.21 (12), p.127007-127007
• Main Authors: Huang, Jing, Zhang, Hao, Lin, Huiying, Li, Tianqi, Mei, Liang, Svanberg, Katarina, Svanberg, Sune
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural Sciences; Annan lantbruksvetenskap; Atom and Molecular Physics and Optics; Atom- och molekylfysik och optik; diode laser spectroscopy; Fruit - chemistry; Fruit - metabolism; Fruit - physiology; fruit skin; Fysik; gas exchange; gas in scattering media absorption spectroscopy; Gases - chemistry; Gases - metabolism; Lantbruksvetenskap och veterinärmedicin; Lasers, Semiconductor; Malus - chemistry; Malus - metabolism; Malus - physiology; Natural Sciences; Naturvetenskap; Other Agricultural Sciences; Other Agricultural Sciences not elsewhere specified; oxygen; Oxygen - chemistry; Oxygen - metabolism; Physical Sciences; respiration; ripening; Spectrum Analysis - methods; Övrig annan lantbruksvetenskap
• ISSN: 1083-3668; 1560-2281
• DOI: 10.1117/1.JBO.21.12.127007

The concentration of the biologically active molecular oxygen gas is of crucial importance for fruits in the metabolic respiration, maturation, and ripening processes. In our study, oxygen content and oxygen transport in fruits, exemplified by apples and guavas, were studied noninvasively by gas in scattering media absorption spectroscopy. The technique is based on the fact that free gases typically have 10,000 times narrower absorption features than the bulk material. The technique was demonstrated in studies of the influence of the fruit skin in regulating the internal oxygen balance, by observing the signal response of the internal oxygen gas to a transient change in the ambient gas concentration on peeled and unpeeled fruits. In addition, the gas exchange rate at different ripening stages was also studied in intact guavas.