Abstract
Standalone and sequential ultrasound (US) and ozone (OZ) processes were applied to cashew apple juice. An unsupervised method, by principal component analysis (PCA), was used to understand the effect of the non-thermal treatments on the cashew apple composition. The US processing (373 W/cm2; 10 min; 40 °C) promoted the highest peroxidase inactivation and increased the flavonoid content and antioxidant activity (DPPH ABTS and FRAP methods). The ozone processing (0.24 mg O3/mL) increased total phenolic compounds (TPC). Sequential processing was carried out by applying both of the processes, using the best processing conditions for US and OZ. Sequential processing resulted in the higher retention of yellow flavonoids than in the control and single processing. However, the effect of sequential US and OZ processing can be deleterious to vitamin C and TPC after 30 days of cold storage while maintaining the flavonoids of the cashew apple juice. Furthermore, the synergy between US and OZ reduced native microbiota counts, suggesting a microbiologically safe juice. Further studies on the mechanism of bioactive compound degradation might be helpful for product quality modulation.