PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an AC high electric field sterilization method widely applicable to various fluid food materials regardless of electric conductivity or viscosity, and capable of setting the most suitable sterilization condition according to a food material to be objective and the kind of germs to be sterilized.SOLUTION: An AC high electric field sterilization method includes sterilizing a fluid food material by adding an AC high voltage to between electrodes while continuously passing the fluid food material into a flow channel where a pair of electrodes are oppositely arranged. As the AC high voltage to be added to between the electrodes, square wave AC is used, and as the square wave AC, there is used square wave AC where a dormant period (dormant period between pulses)TP of time width larger than time width TO of the one-cycle square wave pulse is put between the one-cycle square wave pulse and the next one-cycle square wave pulse.COPYRIGHT: (C)2015,JPO&INPIT【課題】電気伝導度や粘度によらずに種々の流動性食品材料に広く適用可能とし、かつ対象となる食品材料や殺菌すべき菌の種類などに応じて最適な殺菌条件を設定することが可能な交流高電界殺菌方法を提供する。【解決手段】流動性食品材料を、一対の電極が対向配置された流路内を連続的に通過させながら、電極間に交流高電圧を加えることによって、流動性食品材料を殺菌する交流高電界殺菌方法において、前記電極間に加える交流高電圧として矩形波交流を用い、かつその矩形波交流として、ある1サイクルの矩形波パルスと次の1サイクルの矩形波パルスとの間に、前記1サイクルの矩形波パルスの時間幅TOよりも大きい時間幅の休止期間(パルス間休止期間)TPを置いた矩形波交流を用いる。【選択図】図2
