Multicriteria Optimization of Quality Indicators of Sweet Cherry Fruits of Ukrainian Selection During Freezing and Storage

Abstract

The scientifically grounded estimation of the suitability of the zoned sweet cherry varieties of the late-ripening period, Melitopolska chorna, Mirazh, Orion, Siurpryz, Kosmichna, and Prazdnichna, cultivated in the conditions of the southern Steppe of Ukraine to freezing and storage processes at low temperatures by the method of multicriteria optimization has been carried out. The research was conducted during 2013–2017. The sweet cherry fruits, taken for research, were grown in the south of the Zaporizhia region of Ukraine in the Horticultural Research Station named after M. F. Sydorenko. For the research, the sweet cherries samples were stored for six months of new zoned late-ripening varieties. In the triple repeat, the evaluation of the following fruit quality indices was made: the amount of juice loss, the mass concentration of dry soluble substances, the mass fraction of sugars, the mass concentration of titrated acids, the mass fraction of ascorbic acid, and the content of polyphenols. To establish a complex of physical and biochemical indicators of the fruits better for freezing and storage of the late-ripening period of time, the method of multicriteria optimization (geometric convolution criterion) was applied. The values results of target functions φ(x₁)…φ(x₆) when selecting the optimal sweet cherry variety for quick freezing and storage for six months, it was found that the best fruits for freezing in the specified optimal term are the fruits of Mirazh variety (the amount of juice loss immediately after freezing—11.5%; the initial concentration of dry soluble substances—19.3%; sugars—15.2%; acid-based-titration—0.79%; ascorbic acid—8.1 mg/100 g; the sum of bioflavonoids—530.7 mg/100 g).