Vitamin C degradation in acerola pulp during thermal treatment by ohmic and conventional heating was
evaluated. The ohmic heating technology was studied using a Central Composite Rotatable Design, and
two variables were evaluated: the solids content of the pulp (2e8 g/100 g) and the heating voltage (120
e200 V). The results indicate that ascorbic acid degradation was significantly influenced by both of the
aforementioned variables. The total vitamin C degradationwas influenced by the linear and the quadratic
effects of the voltage. A comparative evaluation of the conventional and the ohmic heating processes
showed that ohmic heating, when performed with low voltage gradients, promoted degradation of both
the ascorbic acid and the total vitamin C in a manner similar to conventional heating. However, high
voltage gradients induced greater ascorbic acid degradation because of electrochemical reactions. These
reactions increased when high electric fields were applied, producing compounds that catalyzed the
degradation pathways of ascorbic acid in the presence of oxygen.