PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Matoa (Pometia pinnata) is an underutilised seasonal fruit commonly consumed raw in Indonesia. Despite its nutritional, health, and economic benefits, it lacks postharvest processing and derivative products. This study quantified the physical and thermal properties of matoa fruit to aid in the design of processing equipment. The fruit's principal dimensions averaged 39.30±3.19 mm in length, 29.35±1.41 mm in width, and 28.72±1.38 mm in thickness. The mass ranged from 6.51 to 21.31 g, with volumes between 10.5 and 24.5 cm3. The average geometric and equivalent diameters were 32.10 mm, and the fruit had an ellipsoid shape. The static coefficient of friction was highest on galvanised iron and lowest on stainless steel. Four empirical models, i.e. linear, quadratic, power, and S-curve, were evaluated to predict fruit mass using physical attributes. The multivariate quadratic model with principal dimensions (LWT) provided the highest R2 value for mass prediction. These findings offer a scientific basis for designing grading, sorting, and processing equipment, and for developing postharvest and derivative products.