The influence of ozone exposure on organoleptic and chlorophyll levels of curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.)

Ozone has been utilized widely for sterilization application, for example to keep the freshness of both fruits and veggies yet keep them safe too for human consumption and chemical-free. This work aims to investigate the effect of ozone exposure through the air and water on organoleptic and chlorophyll level of curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L). The given exposure has been done with various ozone concentrations corresponding with increasing exposure time, namely 0.0147 mg/L (120 second exposure time), 0.0294 mg/L (240 second exposure time), 0.0371 mg/L (360 second exposure time) and 0.0479 mg/L (480 second exposure time). The curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L) was originally taken from veggies farmland located in Sumberojo village, Batu sub-district, Batu city East Java, Indonesia. This project was carried out by using Completed Random Contrivance (CRC) technique. The observation was focused on organoleptic and mass loss of curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L) and it was carried out on every 8 hours for two days straight non-stop. The chlorophyll level measurement was employed by using UV-Vis spectrophotometer after two days from the last observation. Organoleptic showed that ozone exposure technique through water mediator with ozone concentration 0.0147 mg/L gave the best results to detain organoleptic damages of curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L). The chlorophyll level was analyzed by employing Statistical Package for The Social Sciences (SPSS) with factorial technique (Two Way ANOVA). Therefore, all the analysis result convinced that this ozone exposure technique with water mediator gave the best results compared to air mediator, in term of chlorophyll level preserving of Lactuca sativa L. This technique is very effective to maintain the quality and curly lettuce (Lactuca sativa L) freshness.