Systematic transition from description to prediction for the oxidation in packaged olive oil.

ABSTRACT

In this work, an oxidation predictive model was proposed, following a methodical consideration of the natural laws and principles that determine the phenomena occurring during the olive oil oxidation. A mathematical description was obtained via a road-map involving selected "food-packaging-environment" system descriptors. A straightforward transition from the phenomena description to the tool was also developed. For this work, oxidation of packed edible oil was tested against the developed methodology, as a characteristic exemplar to confirm and support it. In conclusion, the proposed, mathematically supported, methodology was proven to be highly appropriate and satisfactory for capturing the potential chemical-physical evolution of oxidation, and therefore, the effectiveness of the tool has been demonstrated for oxidation of edible olive oil.