Consumer testing

The vapor/hquid ratio tests measure the amount of vapor formed from a given volume of Hquid at a given temperature at atmospheric pressure. A common measure used in specifying gasoline is the temperature at which the vapor/Hquid ratio is 20 (fV/L=2o ) Although V/L can be measured experimentally, it is a difficult and time consuming test to carry out, and techniques have been developed to calculate it from RVP and D86 values. 

Let us consider a product developer who is trying to improve the taste of an existing product. The first question one could ask (and should ask before continuing) with the new product is does the new product taste different from the old product If trained panellists cannot establish a significant difference, it is hardly justifiable to do consumer tests, let alone launch the product on the market. A standard overall difference test is the triangle test (Fig. 38.1). In such a test one presents three samples, in no particular order, which should be tasted. Two out of the three samples are identical (e.g. the existing product, as a control) and the task is to identify the odd sample (the new product). If enough panellists correctly... 

References appear at the end organized by chapters. The set of exercises is also organized by chapters. The reader is warned that some of the exercises have not been consumer tested. Any one using any of the exercises does so at his/her own peril. 

Dissolution is one of the most time-consuming tests in stability testing, clinical release, and process support of pharmaceutical dosage... 

Helidac therapy combines bismuth subsalicylate, metronidazole, and tetracycline in a consumer-tested, patient-friendly kit. 

As a consequence, in most cases, mixtures of low-calorie sweeteners are used to address this issue. At the same time, numerous sensory and consumer tests have shown major differences between low-calorie sweeteners and sucrose or HFCS with regard to body and aftertaste. 

Outdoor exposure of polymer samples, mounted at a 45° angle and facing south, has been used to measure the resistance of polymers to outdoor weathering (ASTM-D1345). Since these tests are expensive and time-consuming, tests such as ASTM-G23 have been developed in an attempt to gain accelerated test results. 

The uniaxial test is widely used for quality control and formulation testing for obvious reasons. The JANAF configuration is not likely to be replaced for these purposes, especially since the backlog of information relative to the formulation art is composed primarily of data from this specimen. Grain structural analysts require more precise information, however, and when uniaxial data are obtained for their purposes, more elaborate and time-consuming tests may be conducted. 

A test by dropping a loaded (but unfuzed) projectile, rocket, JATO or separate fuze from predetermined heights onto. a hard sur-face is usually conducted to determine if the proj can withstand, without damage, the setback force. Drop test is the nearest substitute for mote expensive and time consuming tests of actual firing the proj and is considered to be satisfactory (Ref 3, PP 96 103)... 

ORGANOLEPTIC. A term widely used to describe consumer testing procedures for food products, perfumes, wines, and the like in which samples of various products, flavors, etc. are submitted to groups or panels. Such tests are a valuable aid in determining the acceptance of tlie products and thns may be viewed as a marketing technique, They also serve psychological purposes and are an important means of e valuating the subjective aspects of taste, odor, color, and related factors, The physical and chemical characteristics of foods are stimuli for the eye, ear, skin, nose, and mouth, whose receptors initiate impulses that travel to the brain, where perception occurs. 

Consumer test data (e.g., feedback from efficacy/preference studies). 

Head of ChinaChem, Carlos Mao Tung, said that it represented three years of intense research by chemists at the company s Shanghai laboratories, followed by three years of safety and consumer testing. Love Chemistry appeared to transform the lives of some people who tested it and we received glowing reports of its effects. Research... 

The group of people at the client company who are involved in the decision on which of the several (often very many) fragrances submitted for a product launch or relaunch should be finally adopted is even more varied. It may include the purchasing department, development chemists, evaluation panels attached to the development laboratories, marketing, in-house evaluation panels, the market researchers who design and interpret consumer tests, even top management—or, as the rumor often goes, the president s wife or secretary. 

The electronic nose arrays have today successfully been used in a vast number of applications. The electronic noses are particularly appealing in food analysis since they resemble the traditional way of controlling the quality of foodstuffs. The electronic nose is already applied as a complement to sensory test panels in the food industry for product quality classification. Examples of applications are classification of grains [6] and beer [7]. Examples of other consumables tested are tobacco [8] and perfumes [9]. Applications in other areas such as environmental control and pulp and paper quality are also reported in over five hundred references currently found in the literature on electronic noses. 

These specialists utilize highly trained judges and sophisticated test designs and analysis to solve sensory problems. Consumer testing in most industry applications now is done with consumers. Even with the continuing development of instrumentation to replace the human judge, sensory analysis continues to expand its contribution to flavor analysis. 

A well-designed consumer test or multiple tests to determine the point at which the product flavor is found to be unacceptable... 

Statistical correlation are established between the oil-quality parameters (also called markers) and consumer test results to establish the threshold value for the marker/markers responsible for product failure. 

If binders are required to achieve the necessary strength of the agglomerated product, great care must be taken to assure that the binder, often developed during time-consuming test series in equipment vendors laboratories, will be available at the project site in sufficient quantity and at acceptable cost. 

---