Ultrasonic Sensors. Good sensors facilitate the automation of food production processes. Low power, high frequency sound can, in some cases, be the ideal sensor as it is non-invasive, non-destructive, and cheap. Ultrasonic methods are already available to measure several simple properties of foods including depth in a tank, flow rate in a pipe, and composition of simple binary solutions. Better data analysis could extend these applications to include measurement of emulsion particle size, polymer compressibility, crystallization of fats and sugars, and chemical kinetics - all without the need to disturb the sample. These sensors can readily be incorporated into an imaging system to detect contamination (e.g., glass, wood, or metal fragments) or structural inhomogineities in the food itself (e.g. air bubbles in cheese, sugar gradients.

Current research in my lab has exploited ultrasonic sensors in reflectance mode to study the concentration and viscosity of simple solutions as well as phase transitons (melting and crystallization) in a number of systems.  We are also concerned with non-invasive ultrasonic thermometry and the use on non-contact mode ultrasonics.

Extending the Functionality of Food Polymers. Food macromolecules are frequently used to impart desired physical structure to foods (e.g., thickening, gel formation, stabilizing emulsions, film formation and microencapsulation). By studying the chemical and physical basis of the interactions responsible for functionality, it is possible to extend the range of use of existing ingredients and develop novel products. If a new role can be identified for a food ingredient, its value is often increased - particularly important for low-value or surplus food ingredients.

Recent studies on the functionality of soy has elucidated a mechanism for the enhancement of protein solubility and viscosity by the addition of surfactants.

Micellar Systems. Many amphiphilic molecules self-assemble in solution to form micelles. In aqueous solution, the micelle core provides a hydrophobic micro-environment, which can solubilize several lipid molecules. This process is fundamental to the understanding of such processes as the formation of emulsions, and their destabilization by dissolution or Ostwald ripening. On a more practical level, selective solubilization of oils into micelles offers a route to fractionation based on molecular size and polarity or, by the reverse process, to incorporate non-polar additives (e.g. flavors or antioxidants) into a pre-existing emulsion.

I am currently working with Dr. Devin Peterson to develop ways to use micelles and food polymers as engineered flavor delivery vehicles.  Work with Dr. Bob Roberts is underway on the roles of an added functional polymer in ice cream.

Lipid Crystallization.  Phase transitions in bulk and emulsified fat has important effects on the stability and sensory properties of foods.  Lipid crystallinity is primarily affected by composition and temperature history and time but other factors (e.g., ultrasonic or shear fields) can be important.

Recent research has focused on the effects of shear on lipid crystallization both in bulk and in the emulsified state and on the effect of lipid crystallization on the destabilization of oil-in-water emulsions (partial coalescence).

Refereed Journal Publications

1) R.V. Potineni, L.A. Dalby, J.N. Coupland and R.F. Roberts. Sensory and Micro-structural Properties of Ice Cream Manufactured at a High Draw Temperature in a Vertical Barrel Freezer and Different Dasher Speeds. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 2006. 43(3): p. 242-246

2) Chee, C.P., Roberts, R.F., Coupland, J.N (2006). Effect of temperature, time, medium form and casein on lipid oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids in algae oil Milchwissenschaft (2): 142-145 2006 Ghosh S, Peterson DG, Coupland JN (2006). Effects of droplet crystallization and melting on the aroma release properties of a model oil-in-water emulsion, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 54(5), 1829-1837.

3) S. Ghosh, G.L.Cramp and J.N. Coupland (2006). Effect of Aqueous Phase Composition on the Freeze-Thaw Stability of Emulsions, Colloids and Surfaces A., 272(1-2): 82-88.

4) N. Tangsuphoom and J.N. Coupland (2005). Effect of Heating and Homogenization on the Stability of Coconut Milk Emulsions. Journal of Food Science, 70 (8): E466-E470

5) C. P. Chee, J. J. Gallaher, D. Djordjevic, H. Faraji, D.J. McClements, E.A. Decker, R. Hollender, D.G. Peterson, R. F. Roberts and J. N. Coupland (2005). Chemical and Sensory Analysis of Strawberry Flavored Yogurt Supplemented with an Omega-3 Oil Rich Emulsion. Journal of Dairy Research, 72, 1-6.

6) J.J. Gallaher, R. Hollender, D.G. Peterson, R.F. Roberts and J.N. Coupland (2004). Effect of Composition and Antioxidants on the Oxidative Stability of Fluid Milk Supplemented with an ?-3 Oil Rich Emulsion. International Dairy Journal, 15(4), 333-341.

7) G.L. Cramp, A.M. Docking, S. Ghosh, and J.N. Coupland (2004). Stability of Oil-in-Water Emulsions to Continuous Phase Freezing. Food Hydrocolloids, 18(6), 899-905.

8) J.N. Coupland (2004). Low Intensity Ultrasound. Food Research International, 37(6), 537-543.

9) R. Saggin and J.N Coupland (2004). Rheology of Xanthan/Sucrose Mixtures at Ultrasonic Frequencies. Journal of Food Engineering, 65(1), 49-53.

10) M. Elwell, R.F. Roberts and J.N. Coupland (2004). Effect of homogenization and surfactant type on exchange of oil between emulsion droplets. Food Hydrocolloids 2004, 18, 413-418

11) R. Saggin, R. and J.N. Coupland (2004), Shear and Longitudinal Reflectance Measurements of Solid Fat Dispersions. Journal of the American Oil Chemists Society, 81, 27-32

12) H. Sigfusson, G.R. Ziegler and J.N. Coupland (2004), Ultrasonic Monitoring of Food Freezing. J. Food Eng, 62, 263-269.

13) A. Malhotra and J.N. Coupland (2004). The Effect of Surfactants on the Solubility, Zeta Potential, and Viscosity of Soy Protein Isolates. Food Hydrocolloids, 18, 263-269.

14) J. Palanuwech, and J. N. Coupland (2003), Effect of Surfactant Type on the Stability of Oil-in-Water Emulsions to Dispersed Phase Crystallization, Colloids and Surfaces A, 223(1-3), 251-262.

15) J. Palanuwech, R. Potineni, R.F. Roberts, and J.N. Coupland (2003), A Method to Measure Free Fat in Emulsions, Food Hydrocolloids 17, 55-62.

16) J.N. Coupland (2002). Crystallization in Emulsions. Current Opinion in Colloid and Interface Science, 7(5-6), 445-450.

17) R. Saggin and J.N. Coupland (2002). Measurement of Solid Fat Content by Ultrasonic Reflectance in Model systems and Chocolate. Food Research International, 35(10), 999-1005.

18) S. Vanapalli, J. Palanuwech and J.N. Coupland (2002), Influence of Fat Crystallization on the Stability of Flocculated Emulsions, J. Ag. Food Chem. 50(18): 5224-5228.

19) R. Saggin and J.N. Coupland (2002), Ultrasonic Monitoring of Powder Dissolution, J Food Sci., 67 (4): 1473-1477.

20) S. Vanapalli and J. Palanuwech and J.N. Coupland (2002), Freeze-thaw Stability of Oil-in-Water Emulsions: Effect of Oil Type, Dispersed Phase Volume Fraction and Cooling Rate, Colloids and Surfaces A. 204(1-3): 227-237.

21) H. Sigfusson, G.R. Ziegler and J.N. Coupland (2001), Ultrasonic Monitoring of Unsteady State Cooling of Food Products, Trans. ASAE. 44: 1235-1240.

22) S. Vanapalli and J.N. Coupland (2001), Emulsions Under Shear - The Formation and Properties of Partially Coalesced Lipid Structures, Food Hydrocolloids, 15:507-512

23) R. Saggin, and J.N. Coupland (2001), Non-Contact Ultrasonic Measurements of Food Materials, Food Research International, 34:865-870.

24) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (2001), Droplet Size Determination in Food Emulsions: Comparison of Ultrasonic and Light Scattering Methods, J. Food Eng., 50:117-120

25) R. Saggin and J.N. Coupland (2001), Concentration Determination by Acoustic Reflectance, J. Food Sci., 68:681-685.

26) R. Saggin and J.N. Coupland (2001), Oil Viscosity Measurement by Ultrasonic Reflectance, J. American Oil Chem. Soc., 78:509-511.

27) S. Vanapalli and J.N. Coupland (2000), Characterization of Food Colloids by Phase Analysis Light Scattering, Food Hydrocolloids, 14:315-317.

28) J.N. Coupland, N.B. Shaw, F.J. Monahan, E.D. O'Riordan, and M. O'Sullivan (2000), Modeling the Effect of Glycerol on the Moisture Sorption Behavior of Whey Protein Edible Films, J. Food Eng., 43:25-30.

29) C. Garbolino, G.R. Ziegler, and J.N. Coupland (2000), Ultrasonic Determination of the Effect of Shear on Lipid Crystallization, J. American Oil Chem. Soc., 77:157-162.

30) T.K. Basaran, J.N. Coupland, and D.J. McClements (1999), Monitoring Molecular Diffusion of Sucrose in Xanthan Solutions using Ultrasonic Velocity Measurements, J. Food Sci., 64:125-128.

31) J.N. Coupland (1998), Ultrasonic Characterization of Emulsions, Recent Res. Devel. Oil Chem., 2:115-137.

32) R. Chanamai, J.N. Coupland, and D.J. McClements (1998), Effect of Temperature on the Ultrasonic Properties of Oil-in-Water Emulsions, Colloids and Surfaces A., 139:241-250.

33) R. Ghaedian, J.N. Coupland, E.A. Decker and D.J. McClements (1998), Ultrasonic Determination of Fish Composition, J. Food Eng., 35:323-327.

34) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (1997), A Compilation of Some Physical Properties of Liquid Edible Oils, J. American Oil Chem. Soc., 74:1559-1564.

35) J.N. Coupland, D. Brathwaite, P. Fairley, and D.J. McClements (1997), Effect of Ethanol on the Solubilization of Hydrocarbon Emulsion Droplets in Nonionic Surfactant Micelles. J. Colloid Interface Sci., 190:71-75.

36) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (1997), Droplet Composition Affects the Rate of Oxidation of Emulsified Ethyl Linoleate - Supporting Evidence, J. American Oil Chem. Soc., 73:1207.

37) K. Demetriades, J.N. Coupland, and D.J. McClements (1997), Physical Properties of Whey Protein Stabilized Emulsions as Related to pH and NaCl, J. Food Sci, 62:1-6.

38) K. Demetriades, J.N. Coupland, and D.J. McClements (1997), The Effect of Temperature on the Stability of Whey Protein Stabilized emulsions, J. Food Sci, 62:462-467.

39) J. Weiss, J.N. Coupland, D. Brathwaite and D.J. McClements (1997), Molecular Structure of Hydrocarbons in Emulsion Droplets Affects their Solubilization in Nonionic Surfactant Micelles. Colloids and Surfaces A., 121:53-60.

40) J.N. Coupland, Z. Zhu, H. Wan, D.J. McClements, W.W. Nawar, P. Chinachotti (1996), Droplet Composition Affects the Rate of Oxidation of Emulsified Ethyl Linoleate, J. American Oil Chem. Soc., 73:795-801.

41) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (1996), Lipid Oxidation in Food Emulsions, Trends in Food Science and Technology, 7:83-91.

42) J. Weiss, J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (1996), Solubilization of Hydrocarbon Emulsion Droplets Suspended in Nonionic Surfactant micelle solutions, J. Phys. Chem., 100:1066-71.

43) J.N. Coupland, J. Weiss, A. Lovy and D.J. McClements (1996), Solubilization Kinetics of Triacyl Glycerol and Hydrocarbon Emulsion Droplets in a Micellar solution, J. Food Sci., 61:1114-1117.

44) D.J. McClements and J.N. Coupland (1996), Theory of Droplet Size Distribution Measurements in Emulsions using Ultrasonic Spectroscopy. Colloids and Surfaces A., 117:161-70.

45) Y. Vodovotz, E. Vittadini, J.N. Coupland, D.J. McClements and P. Chinachotti (1996), Bridging the Gap: The use of Confocal Microscopy in Food Research, Food Tech., 50:74-82.

Parts of Books and Extended Conference Proceedings

46) J.N. Coupland (2006). Beyond Hard Spheres: The Functional Role of Lipids in Food Emulsions. In Handbook of Functional Lipids edited by C. Akoh , pp 163-176, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fl.

47) S. Vanapalli and J.N. Coupland (2004). Orthokinetic Stability of Food Emulsions. In Food Emulsions, 4th Edn., edited by S.E. Friberg, K. Larsson, and J. Sjoblom, pp 327-352, Marcel Dekker, New York.

48) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (2004). Ultrasonic Analysis of Food Emulsions. In Food Emulsions, 4th Edn., edited by S.E. Friberg, K. Larsson, and J. Sjoblom, pp 573-592, Marcel Dekker, New York.

49) G.R. Ziegler, C. Garbolino, and J.N. Coupland (2003). The Influence of Surfactants and Moisture on the Colloidal and Rheological Properties of Model Chocolate Suspensions. ISFRS Conference Proceedings.

50) J.N. Coupland and R. Saggin (2003), Ultrasonic Monitoring of Chocolate Tempering. "Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Confectionery Science", ed. G.R. Ziegler, Penn State University Press.

51) J.N. Coupland and R. Saggin (2002), Ultrasonic Sensors for the Food Industry, Advances in Food and Nutrition Research, vol. 45, ed. S. Taylor, pp 101-165, Academic Press, NY.

52) J.N. Coupland (2002). Determination of Solid Fat Content by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance. In "Current Protocols in Food Analytical Chemistry", eds. R.E. Wroldstad, T.E. Acree, E.A. Decker, M.H. Penner, D.S. Reid, S.J. Schwartz, C.F. Shoemaker, D. Smith, and P. Sporns, pp. D3.1.1-D3.1.8. John Wiley & Sons, New York.

53) R. Saggin and J.N. Coupland (2002), Study of Dissolution Kinetics of Food Powders by Ultrasonic Reflectance. In "Fine Powder Processing 2001" eds J.H. Adair, V.M. Puri, K.S. Harris and C.C. Huang, pp 44-51. Penn State University Press, University Park.

54) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (2001), Ultrasonic Characterization of Food Emulsions. In "Encyclopedic Handbook of Emulsion Technology", ed. J. Sjoblom, Marcel Dekker, pp. 233-242.

55) J.N. Coupland, (2001), Ultrasonic Characterization of Lipid Crystallization, In: "Crystallization and Solidification Properties of Lipids", eds. N. Widlak, R. Hartel, S. Narine, pp. 132-146, AOCS Press, Champaign, Illinois.

56) J.N. Coupland and D.J. McClements (2001), Ultrasonics. In "NDT Methods for Foods", ed. S. Gunasekaran, Marcel Dekker, NY, pp. 217-241.

57) J.N. Coupland, E. Dickinson, D.J. McClements, M.J.W. Povey, C. Rancourt de Mimmerand (1993), Crystallization of simple paraffins and monoacid saturated triacyl glycerols as an oil phase in water. In: "Food Colloids and Polymers: Structure and Dynamics", eds. E. Dickinson and P. Walstra, Royal Society of Chemistry, London, pp 243-249.

58) J.N. Coupland (published online 5/9/2006). Use of Ultrasound for the Non-Destructive Evaluation of Food. Part of the online "Encyclopedia of Agricultural, Food, and Biological Engineering" edited by D. Heldmann (Marcel Dekker).

Manuscripts accepted for publication

59) Celia P. Chee, Darinka Djordjevic, Habibollah Faraji, Eric A. Decker, Ruth Hollender, D. Julian McClements, Devin G. Peterson, Robert F. Roberts and John N. Coupland (accepted 2/13/2006). Sensory Properties of Vanilla and Strawberry Flavored Ice cream Supplemented with Omega-3 Fatty Acids. Submitted to Milchwissenschaft.

60) J.N. Coupland and H. Sigfusson. Food Emulsions. Submitted as a contribution to "Handbook of Food Technology and Food Engineering" edited by. M. Lo. (Marcel Dekker).

61) I. Gülseren and J.N. Coupland (accepted 3/22/2006). Ultrasonic Velocity Measurements in Frozen Model Food Solutions. Submitted to J. Food Eng.

Manuscripts submitted for publication

62) J.N. Coupland (submitted 2/27/04). Food Emulsions. Submitted as a contribution to "The Chemical Physics of Foods" edited by P. Belton (Blackwell).

63) S. Ghosh, D.G. Peterson., J.N. Coupland (submitted 4/25/06) "Flavour binding by solid and liquid emulsion droplets". Submitted to the published proceedings of "Food Colloids: Self-Assembly and Material Science" edited by E. Dickinson.

64) G.R. Ziegler, C. Garbolino, J.N. Coupland, and G. Mongia (submitted 1/3/06). "Surface and Flow Properties of Model Chocolate Dispersions". Submitted to Food Biophysics.

65) S. Ghosh and J.N. Coupland (submitted 6/18/06) "Effects of freeze/thaw on the stability of emulsions". Submitted to the peer-reviewed journal Food Hydrocolloids as part of the special edition devoted to papers presented at the 8th International Hydrocolloids Conference (Trondheim, Norway), edited by Kurt Draget.