What is texture analysis?

Texture analysis primarily refers to measuring the mechanical properties of a product.

Most of the time, these are food products because they appeal to the sensory properties experienced by humans.

50 years of research have made it possible to develop definitions relating the sensory properties of a product to the properties of an instrument; these can be calculated from the results of a texture analysis test composed of two cycles. Texture analyzers perform these types of tests by applying controlled forces to the product and recording responses in terms of force, strain and duration.

The charts above show two methods of analyzing data from a two-phase texture profile analysis test. The force versus time graph clearly shows the peak force resulting from each compression cycle; the force versus distance graph, on the other hand, gives a better representation of the sample's response to the application and removal of a stress.