Effect of oxygen synergistic ethylene ripening on the quality of postharvest banana

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

• A new method for ripening bananas after harvest using oxygen and ethylene was proposed. • The new method made bananas ripen and soften faster. • The best process was selected using pca for the 25% oxygen combined with 100 μl/L ripening group. • The treated group had better nutritional content and flavor than the control group. Bananas were typically harvested as green fruit during long - distance transport, then ripened after arriving at the sales location, and finally reached the consumers. Traditional methods of ripening had irregularities, and the cost of ripening was high.Banana fruits were divided into four groups and subjected to simultaneous 24-hour ripening treatment under sealed conditions at 18°C and 90–95% relative humidity, using 1500 ppm ethylene, 23%, 25%, and 27% oxygen concentrations, along with 100 μl/L ethylene. This study investigated the effects of oxygen synergistic ethylene ripening on the physiology, nutrition and flavor of bananas. From the physiological changes observed during the ripening process of bananas, oxygen and ethylene accelerated the ripening process. The polyphenol content in the 25+100 treatment group consistently exceeded that of other treatment groups (p<0.05), peaking at 2.2613 mg/g on day 5, and the vitamin C content in the 25+100 treatment group showed the smallest decrease, dropping only from 8.33 mg/100g on Day 1 to 5.90 mg/100g on Day 3. From the electronic tongue analysis, the 25+100 group had better flavor. According to SPME-GC-MS, the 25+100 group had better aroma quality. Ultimately, principal component analysis was used to select the best method of ripening. This study explored the synergistic ethylene ripening with high oxygen to improve the quality of bananas and provided new possibilities for the development of ripening technology.