About

Carmen Moraru is a Professor of Food Processing and Engineering in the Department of Food Science. Her research and teaching interests focus on the physical and engineering properties of foods, food and dairy processing, and food safety engineering. Her research aims to study and optimize food processing methods that enhance product safety, quality, and shelf life. Current research areas include membrane separation for microbial removal and nonthermal concentration, light-based treatments for microbial inactivation, high pressure processing as a novel method of food structuring, and microwave vacuum drying. She also investigates intermolecular interactions and structural transformations during processing and their effects on the quality and functionality of foods, including plant-based and dairy foods. Additionally, her work explores the effect of surface nanoscale topography on microbial attachment and the development of microbial-repellent surfaces.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Food science
• Materials science
• Chromatography
• Biochemistry
• Optoelectronics
• Nanotechnology
• Organic chemistry
• Composite material
• Biology

Selected publications

• Continuous Light‐Based Technologies

  2025-09-19

  other

  This chapter provides an in-depth overview of continuous light-based disinfection technologies and their applications in the food industry to enhance food safety and quality. Three key germicidal light-based technologies are discussed: UV-C light (200–280 nm), far-UV-C light (~222 nm), and near-UV visible light (400–425 nm). UV-C light, particularly generated from LEDs, offers precise and effective microbial inactivation, which is ideal for even surfaces and thin liquid treatments. However, UV-C use is limited by its potential harm to human cells and its shallow penetration depth. Far-UV-C light, emitted by excimer lamps, offers a safer alternative to UV-C light, capable of inactivating foodborne pathogens with minimal risk to humans, thereby enhancing its suitability for food processing or food service operations. Long-term exposure to near-UV violet-blue light induces photooxidation to inactivate pathogens and thus provides a nontoxic antimicrobial intervention method for use in food processing and storage environments. The chapter also delves into the principles of these germicidal light-based technologies, underscores key treatment considerations, highlights recent research advancements, and discusses opportunities to enhance their performance and expand their impact in the food industry. The information presented here aims to inform potential users and inspire further innovation and adoption of light-based disinfection as an important nonthermal intervention approach for ensuring food safety and quality.

  PublisherDOI

• Draw solution selection and process parameters impact the performance of forward osmosis for nonthermal concentration of liquids

  Journal of Food Engineering · 2025-05-10 · 2 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Acidification and Calcium Addition Effects on High-Pressure and Thermally Induced Pulse Protein Gels

  Gels · 2025-12-02

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Modulating the characteristics of pulse protein gels provides opportunities for creating gelled products with unique structures and textures. This work investigates the effects of acidification (pH of 6.3-6.6, 5.5, 4.5), calcium addition (0-30 mg Ca/g protein), and process type (nonthermal vs. thermal) on the structural characteristics of gels made from pea, lentil, and faba bean protein concentrates. Protein concentrate suspensions were processed under conditions that lead to gel formation, either by high-pressure processing (HPP) at 600 MPa, 5 °C for 4 min, or thermal processing at 95 °C for 15 min. The resulting gels were evaluated for rheological properties, texture, water holding capacity, and structure. Both acidification and calcium addition increased protein aggregation due to reduced electrostatic repulsion among protein molecules. Acidification increased the strength of both HPP- and thermally induced gels, while the effect of calcium addition depended on pH and process type. Generally, HPP-induced gels had lower mechanical strength than thermally induced gels, but certain combinations of acidification and calcium addition produced HPP-induced gels stronger than their thermally induced counterparts. These results demonstrate how the structure and mechanical properties of pulse protein gels can be customized through a combination of acidification, calcium addition, and processing. This approach can be used as a foundation for the development of plant protein-based foods of desired structure and texture.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Microwave vacuum drying of low-moisture part-skim mozzarella: Process parameters and sample geometry affect product characteristics

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-04-11 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  ), and sample geometry on the drying and expansion behavior of low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese during MVD were investigated. The created MVD cheese puffs' moisture content, water activity, area ratio, texture, and color were determined. Vacuum level had the greatest influence on expansion (1.74-3.59 area ratio) but minimal effect on drying, with an optimum puffing range between 6 and 10 kPa. Microwave power input and sample geometry had the greatest effect on drying (6-12% wet basis final moisture was achieved), but minimal effect on expansion. The cheese puffs' texture was largely determined by their moisture content and internal structure and degree of expansion. Limited browning occurred during the MVD process, especially for the smallest sized samples. Overall, this study shows how MVD processing conditions can be optimized for the drying and puffing of cheese, which can help dairy processors use this technology to manufacture dried cheese snacks to meet consumer preferences.

  PublisherDOI

• Orthogonal Nano‐Engineering (ONE): Modulating Nanotopography and Surface Chemistry of Aluminum Oxide for Superior Antibiofouling and Enhanced Chemical Stability

  Advanced Materials Interfaces · 2024-11-12

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  Abstract Decoupling certain material surface properties can be key to attaining critical property‐activity relationships that underpin their antibiofouling performance. Here, orthogonal nano‐engineering (ONE) is employed to decouple the influences of nanotopography and surface chemistry on surface antibiofouling. Nanotopography and surface chemistry are systematically varied with a two‐step process. Controlled nanotopography is obtained by electrochemical anodization of aluminum, which generated anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) surfaces with cylindrical nanopores (diameters: 15, 25, and 100 nm). To modify surface chemistry while preserving nanotopography, an ultrathin (≈5 nm) yet stable zwitterionic coating of poly(divinylbenzene‐4‐vinylpyridyl sulfobetaine) is deposited on these surfaces using initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD). Antibiofouling performance is assessed by quantifying 48‐h biomass formed by gram positive and negative bacteria. The ONE surfaces demonstrated enhanced antibiofouling performance, with small‐pore nanotopography and zwitterionic chemistry each lowered biomass accumulation by tested species, with potential additive effects. The most effective chemistry‐topography combination (ZW‐AAO15) enabled an overall reduction of 91% for Escherichia coli , 76% for Staphylococcus epidermidis , 69% for Listeria monocytogenes , and 67% for Staphylococcus aureus , relative to the uncoated nanosmooth control. Additionally, the composite ZW coating exhibited encouraging anticorrosion properties under both static and turbulent cleaning conditions, vital to antibiofouling applications in healthcare and food industries.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Orthogonal Nano-Engineering (ONE): Modulating Nanotopography and Surface Chemistry of Aluminum Oxide for Superior Antifouling and Enhanced Chemical Stability

  ChemRxiv · 2024-04-08 · 1 citations

  preprintOpen access

  Decoupling certain material surface properties can be key to attaining critical property-activity relationships that underpin their antifouling performance. Here, we employed Orthogonal Nano-Engineering (ONE) to decouple the influences of nanotopography and surface chemistry on surface antifouling. Nanotopography and surface chemistry were systematically varied with a two-step process. Controlled nanotopography was obtained by electrochemical anodization of aluminum, which generated anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) surfaces with cylindrical nanopores (diameters: 15 nm, 25 nm, 100 nm). To modify surface chemistry while preserving nanotopography, an ultrathin (~5 nm) yet stable zwitterionic coating of poly(divinylbenzene-4-vinylpyridyl sulfobetaine) was deposited on these surfaces using initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD). Antifouling performance was assessed by quantifying 48-h biomass formed by Gram positive and negative bacteria. The ONE surfaces demonstrated enhanced antifouling performance, with small-pore nanotopography and zwitterionic chemistry each lowered biomass accumulation by tested species, with potential additive effects. The most effective chemistry-topography combination (ZW-AAO15) enabled an overall reduction of 91% for Escherichia coli, 76% for Staphylococcus epidermidis, 69% for Listeria monocytogenes, and 67% for Staphylococcus aureus, relative to the uncoated nanosmooth control. Additionally, the composite ZW coating exhibited encouraging anticorrosion properties under both static and turbulent cleaning conditions, vital to antifouling applications in healthcare and food industries.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Exposure to 222 nm far UV-C effectively inactivates planktonic foodborne pathogens and inhibits biofilm formation

  Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies · 2023-06-07 · 23 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Microbacterium represents an emerging microorganism of concern in microfiltered extended shelf-life milk products

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2023-09-09 · 13 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Growing interest in the manufacture of extended shelf-life (ESL) milk, which is typically achieved by a high-temperature treatment called ultra-pasteurization (UP), is driven by distribution challenges, efforts to reduce food waste, and more. Even though high-temperature, short-time (HTST) pasteurized milk has a substantially shorter shelf life than UP milk, HTST milk is preferred in the United States because consumers tend to perceive UP milk as less desirable due to the “cooked” flavor associated with high-temperature processing. While ESL beyond 21 d may be possible for HTST, the survival and outgrowth of psychrotolerant aerobic spore-forming bacteria can still be a limitation to extending shelf life of HTST milk. Microfiltration (MF) is effective for reducing vegetative microorganisms and spores in raw milk, but it is unclear what the effects of membrane pore size, storage temperature, and milk type (i.e., skim vs. whole) are on the microbial shelf life of milk processed by both MF and HTST pasteurization. To investigate these factors, raw skim milk was MF using different pore sizes (0.8 or 1.2 μm), and then MF skim milk and standardized whole milk (MF skim with heat-treated [85°C for 20 s] cream) were HTST pasteurized at 75°C for 20 s. Subsequently, milk was stored at 3°C, 6.5°C, or 10°C and total bacteria counts were measured for up to 63 d. An ANOVA indicated that mean bacterial concentrations between storage temperatures were significantly different from each other, with mean maximum observed concentrations of 3.67, 5.33, and 8.08 log10 cfu/mL for storage temperatures 3°C, 6.5°C, and 10°C, respectively. Additionally, a smaller difference in mean maximum bacterial concentrations throughout shelf life was identified between pore sizes (<1 log cfu/mL), but no significant difference was attributed to milk type. An unexpected outcome of this study was the identification of Microbacterium as a major contributor to the bacterial population in MF ESL milk. Microbacterium is a psychrotolerant, thermoduric gram-positive, non-spore-forming rod with a small cell size (∼0.9 μm length and ∼0.3 μm width), which our data suggest was able to permeate the membranes used in this study, survive HTST pasteurization, and then grow at refrigeration temperatures. While spores continue to be a key concern for the manufacture of MF, ESL milk, our study demonstrates the importance of other psychrotolerant, thermoduric bacteria such as Microbacterium to these products.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Rao, Andy

  eCommons (Cornell University) · 2023-01-01

  otherSenior author

  Memorial Statement for Andy Rao who died in 2022. The memorial statements contained herein were prepared by the Office of the Dean of the University Faculty of Cornell University to honor its faculty for their service to the university.

  Publisher

• Mechano-Bactericidal Surfaces: Mechanisms, Nanofabrication, and Prospects for Food Applications

  Annual Review of Food Science and Technology · 2023-03-27 · 21 citations

  reviewOpen accessSenior author

  Mechano-bactericidal (MB) nanopatterns have the ability to inactivate bacterial cells by rupturing cellular envelopes. Such biocide-free, physicomechanical mechanisms may confer lasting biofilm mitigation capability to various materials encountered in food processing, packaging, and food preparation environments. In this review, we first discuss recent progress on elucidating MB mechanisms, unraveling property-activity relationships, and developing cost-effective and scalable nanofabrication technologies. Next, we evaluate the potential challenges that MB surfaces may face in food-related applications and provide our perspective on the critical research needs and opportunities to facilitate their adoption in the food industry.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Jozef L. Kokini

  Purdue University West Lafayette

  26 shared

• Y. Cheng

  Anhui Medical University

  15 shared

• Sean Liu

  12 shared

• Chithra P. Panchapakesan

  Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

  12 shared

• Dennis R. Heldman

  The Ohio State University

  9 shared

• Randy W. Worobo

  Cornell University

  8 shared

• Lillian Hsu

  Cornell University

  8 shared

• Larry J. Forney

  University of Idaho

  8 shared

Labs

• Moraru LabPI