Compressive Creep Behavior of Fruits

Creep tests were performed to determine the nonlinear viscoelastic properties of apples and pears with the creep experiment apparatus designed in this study. Compressive creep characteristics of fruits were tested at two kinds of storage conditions, four periods of storage and three levels of initial stress. Ten replications were made at each treatment combination. The creep behavior of the fruits could be well described by the nonlinear viscoelastic model as a function of initial stress and time. however, for each level of initial stress applied, the compressive behavior of the samples was satisfactorily represented by Burger's model. For all sample fruits, the longer the samples was stored, the higher the instantaneous elastic strain was observed, and the creep progressed at a high rate. These phenomena were even more remarkable on the fruit stored at the normal temperature storage rather than at the low temperature storage.