New Infrared-Powered Retort at Different Times and Temperatures: Updating Conventional Thermal Sterilization for a More Sustainable Canning Process and Cleaner Food Production

This study aims to reduce energy consumption and processing time in the canning process by employing an alternative sustainable heating approach. A pilot-scale retort powered by an infrared-heating steam generator (RIR) equipped with the Internet of Things (IoT) was developed, followed by verification for the fish can sterilization process at various times (10–20 min), temperatures (110°C–121°C), and input powers (1.7–2.7 kW). The system's thermal performance and steam's physicochemical properties were analyzed and compared with conventional retorting (CR), followed by process prediction by an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS). According to the results, specific energy consumption (SEC) for steam generation by RIR and CR was 14,544 and 21,429 kJ/kg, indicating a substantial enhancement in energy utilization efficiency (> 32%). At 2.7 kW, RIR was superior to CR with 22% higher steam generation efficiency (66.93% vs. 54.92%), 30% faster heating rate (2.92°C/min vs. 2.25°C/min), and 38% shorter time for delivering 116°C steam (20.01 vs. 32.20 min). Increasing power enhanced steam electrical conductivity and productivity. Longer sterilization time and higher temperatures enhanced cumulative lethality, with a maximum value of 26.39 and 17.26 min for RIR and CR, respectively. The optimal RIR temperature and time to achieve the highest sterilization degree with reduced consumed energy were 116°C and 15 min. The come-up time for the can's cold point was 21 min in RIR, about 48% of CR. The proposed RIR system can contribute to sustainable canned food production by increasing process efficiency (66.93%), reducing operation costs (17.58%), and reducing greenhouse gas emissions (17.60%) while enhancing product quality and safety through process innovation.