Electroanalysis in food process control

The process analytical chemistry (PAC) approach is different from the traditional way of food process control. It is important to note that the term analytical in process analytical technology (PAT) is viewed broadly to include chemical, physical, microbiological, mathematical, and risk analysis conducted in an integrated manner. Spectroscopic sensors, in combination with multivariate data analysis, often wins the competition for most favorable process analyzer as compared to other during-process measurements. This chapter discusses two systems that have a chance to be used during food processing: the so called e-nose and e-tongue. E-tongues can be found in different versions according to the detectors employed: electrochemical, optical, mass and enzymatic sensors (biosensors). The chapter considers PCA and artificial neural network (ANN), both extensively applied to e-noses and e-tongues results both for discrimination and monitoring purposes. Process sampling and careful consideration of the process dynamics is of paramount importance when implementing PAT.T