PVA–alginate Immobilized Pectinase from Aspergillus Niger As a Promising System for Pomegranate (punica Granatum) and Pineapple (ananas Comosus) Juice Clarification

Fruit juice clarification is a crucial processing step that enhances visual appearance, filtration efficiency, stability, and consumer acceptability by reducing turbidity and viscosity while improving overall juice quality. In this study, pectinase immobilized in a PVA–alginate matrix was applied for the clarification of pomegranate (Punica granatum) and pineapple (Ananas comosus) juices, as the PVA–alginate support provides excellent mechanical stability, structural integrity, enzyme retention, and reusability for sustainable juice processing. The immobilized enzyme beads exhibited good structural integrity with a swelling ratio of 2.57. Immobilization shifted the optimum pH from 4.0 to 5.0 and the optimum temperature from 40 to 50 °C, while enhancing thermal stability, storage stability, and reusability, retaining measurable activity after six reuse cycles and approximately 37