Modelling O2 and CO2 exchange for development of perforation-mediated modified atmosphere packaging Original Research Article

Perforation-mediated modified atmosphere packaging relies on the use of macro perforations or tubes to control the O2 and CO2 exchange and create the desired atmosphere inside an otherwise gas-tight package. In this work, the O2 and CO2 exchange through a single tube was studied. Different temperatures (5–20°C) and tube dimensions (length from 9 to 17 mm and diameter from 6 to 30 mm) were tested. O2 and CO2 mass transfer coefficients were determined according to a lumped mass transfer capacitance model that yielded a good description of the gas transfer. Temperature in the range tested did not show a significant effect on the mass transfer coefficients. A multiplicative non-linear equation was found to yield a good prediction of the dependence of the O2 mass transfer coefficient on tube diameter and length. The ratio between the CO2 and O2 mass transfer coefficients, an important parameter in the design of MAP, was 0.81 and none of the factors tested influenced its value.