Because of the wide use of chromium-containing feed, much hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) tends to accumulate in pork. In order to decrease the toxicity of Cr(VI)-containing pork for human beings, high-energy electron beam (HEEB) irradiation was used to reduce highly toxic Cr(VI) to low toxic trivalent chromium (Cr(III)) in lean, fat, and marbled pork. HEEB irradiation could efficiently and nondestructively reduce both free and adsorbed Cr(VI) in pork, achieving the highest reductive efficiency (RE) of 98.03%. Therein, hydrated electrons (eaq- ) and hydrogen radical (•H) generated during the irradiation process probably played key roles in the reduction. The effects of irradiation dose, initial concentration of Cr(VI), pH, temperature, salinity, and oil on the RE were investigated to obtain the optimal reduction conditions, proving the high universality of this approach. This work provides a clean and low-cost method for removing Cr(VI) from pork, which is important to ensure food safety.
Practical application: This work describes a facile, nondestructive, and clean method for removing Cr(VI) from meat product, which may have a potential application prospect in ensuring food quality and safety.
Keywords: Cr(VI)-containing pork; hexavalent chromium; high energy electron beam; reductive efficiency.
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