# Applications of Water Jet Cutting Technology in Agricultural Engineering: A Review
## 3 Applications of Water Jet Cutting Technology on Different Agricultural Materials
### Vegetables
#### 3.1.2 Controlling Post-Cutting Influences  
Due to convenience and health, the fresh vegetable processing market is expanding steadily. However, cutting vegetables will inevitably cause mechanical damage to plant tissues, trigger various reactions, and accelerate aging, affecting fresh vegetables' safety and shelf life [18]. Therefore, it is necessary to control post-cutting influences such as cut browning, bacterial infection, and so on [28; 38].  
When cutting carrots, loose layers of cells appeared on the cut surface, which quickly dehydrated and formed white tissue, affecting the appearance and texture of carrot products [45]. [PERSON] et al. [46] found as much white tissue formed by water jet cutting as by a culinary knife on the cutting surface of carrots during storage with scanning electron microscopy. They advised exploring further the possibility of using a smaller water jet nozzle or adjusting the traverse speed to avoid the creation of loose cell layers. [PERSON] et al. [28] found that using water jets to cut lettuce had an inhibitory effect on the browning of cut surfaces, whether working at 2 \({}^{\circ}\)C or 20 \({}^{\circ}\)C. [PERSON] et al. [18; 23], respectively, evaluated the effects of using pure water jets (0.1 mm nozzle diameter, 250 MPa pressure) and conventional blades to cut fresh radicchio and red oak leaf lettuce. They discovered that both methods had a low degree of microbial counts, which were calculated with weighed arithmetic means. Therefore, they proposed that water jet cutting might be an effective alternative to blade cutting and could effectively avoid sharpening blades and cross-contamination during operation interruption. Water jets were used by [PERSON] et al. [19] to cut salad with fresh iceberg lettuce and entive as raw materials, which obtained the same product quality as conventional blades. Meanwhile, after professional evaluations by the sensory panel, they concluded that water pressures and nozzle parameters slightly affected the sensory quality and the appearance of cut edges. [PERSON] et al. [47] used water jets (0.152 mm nozzle diameter, 207 MPa pressure) to slice potato tubers and observed the results with scanning electron microscopy. They found that because the nonuniformity of the water jet column and surrounding droplets might form a furrow from top to bottom, French fries cut with the water jet resulted in more color irregularities than blade cutting. However, there was no difference in taste or texture. When seed potatoes are cut and prepared in an automated blades process, the microbial cross-contamination of cut surfaces among seed potatoes may occur, reducing production [38]. [PERSON] et al. [38] designed an assembly line for cutting seed potatoes with the liquid jet cutting technology. They adopted the liquid jets containing chemicals for disintegrle potatoes to avoid microbial cross-contamination.  
Therefore, when harvesting vegetables by water jet cutting technology in the field, the design and function realization of the mobile harvester are vital, including cleanliness, water capacity, and machine size. Recycling water from a horizontal jet harvester is a great way to reduce water consumption. When cutting fresh vegetables, attention should be paid to the post-cutting influences. For example, optimizing jet cutting parameters controls cut browning and extra tissue generation. Water jets and traditional blades have similar cutting effects when cutting some vegetables. However, the non-contact cutting way makes water jet cutting avoid microbial cross-contamination compared to blade cutting. In addition, liquid jet cutting technology can use working fluids containing disinfection, but further studies should be explored to improve the method.