Effect of Thymol/Sodium Alginate Coating on the Storage Quality of Clapp Favonite Pear Fruit

Clapp Favonite pear fruit were treated with sodium alginate(SA,2%(m/v))and thymol/sodium alginate(Thy/SA,the final concentration of Thy was 40 mg/L)coatings and stored at 20℃. Fruit firmness,soluble solids content,ascorbic acid content,titratable acid content,malondialdehyde content,polyphenol oxidase activity and other indicators were determined to evaluate the quality changes of fruit. The results showed that,the storage period of fruit coated with Thy/SA was prolonged from 9 d(control group)to 18 d. Thy/SA coating slowed down the decrease of firmness,titratable acid,ascorbic acid,total phenol content,and also inhibited the increase of soluble solids and malondialdehyde content,and the activity of polyphenol oxidase and catalase. Therefore,Thy/SA coating could effectively maintain the fruit quality of Clapp Favonite pear during storage,thereby prolong its storage period.