DRYING KINETICS OF SOME FRUITS

Drying kinetics of four Fruits (namely, apple, pear, kiwi and banana) were studied by introducing an one-parameter empirical mass transfer model, involving a characteristic parameter (drying constant), as a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in a laboratory dryer, using non-linear regression analysis. The investigation involved a wide range of characteristic dimensions of samples and air conditions (temperature, humidity, and superficial velocity). The parameters of the model considered were found to be greatly affected by sample characteristic dimension and air temperature. The model also involved the equilibrium material moisture content which was formulated in the form of the GAB equation. Its parameters were evaluated by means of non-linear regression analysis to independent experiments covering two process variables (temperature and water activity of the surrounding air).     

DRYING KINETICS OF ONION AND GREEN PEPPER

ABSTRACT

Drying kinetics were examined by introducing one-parameter empirical mass aansfer model, where the characteristic parameter (drying constant), is a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in an experimental through dryer, using direct regression analysis. Investigation involved two vegetables (namely, green pepper and onion) and a wide range of characteristic dimensions of samples and air conditions (temperature, humidity, and velocity). The parameters of the model considered were found to be greatly affected by sample characteristic dimension and air temperature.     

DRYING KINETICS FOR SOME FRUITS: PREDICTING OF POROSITY AND COLOR DURING DEHYDRATION.

ABSTRACT

Drying kinetics of four fruits (prune, quince, fig and strawberry) were studied by using a simple mass transfer mathematical model involving a characteristic parameter (K) as a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in a laboratory air dryer, using non-linear regression analysis. The investigation involved three values of sample thickness (5, 10, 15mm) and three different air temperatures (50, 60, 70?°C).

The parameters of the model were found to be greatly affected by sample thickness and air temperature. The effect of moisture content on the porosity of three fruits (namely avocado, prune and strawberry) was also investigated. A simple mathematical model was used to correlate porosity with moisture content. It was found that porosity increased with decreasing moisture content.

Samples of three fruits (avocado, prune and strawberry) were investigated to estimate color changes during conventional drying at 70?°C. A first order kinetic model was fitted to experimental data with great success. It is found that the color of avocado and strawberry change while the color of prune remains the same.

Furthermore, the water sorption isotherms of three fruits (avocado, prune and strawberry) at 25° temperature were determined experimentally and the parameters at the GAB equation were evaluated by means of non-linear regression analysis. The use of the above equation produced a very good fit.     

MICROWAVE VACUUM DRYING KINETICS OF SOME FRUITS

ABSTRACT

Microwave vacuum drying kinetics of three fruits (namely, apple, kiwi and pear) were studied by introducing an one-parameter empirical mass transfer model, involving a characteristic parameter (drying constant), as a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in a microwave oven equipped with vacuum apparatus, using non-linear regression analysis. The investigation involved a wide range of microwave power and vacuum pressure levels. The parameters of the model considered were found to be greatly affected by the microwave power level while vacuum pressure affected slightly the process.     

DRYING KINETICS OF ONION AND GREEN PEPPER

Drying kinetics were examined by introducing one-parameter empirical mass aansfer model, where the characteristic parameter (drying constant), is a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in an experimental through dryer, using direct regression analysis. Investigation involved two vegetables (namely, green pepper and onion) and a wide range of characteristic dimensions of samples and air conditions (temperature, humidity, and velocity). The parameters of the model considered were found to be greatly affected by sample characteristic dimension and air temperature.     

DRYING KINETICS FOR SOME FRUITS: PREDICTING OF POROSITY AND COLOR DURING DEHYDRATION.

Drying kinetics of four fruits (prune, quince, fig and strawberry) were studied by using a simple mass transfer mathematical model involving a characteristic parameter (K) as a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in a laboratory air dryer, using non-linear regression analysis. The investigation involved three values of sample thickness (5, 10, 15mm) and three different air temperatures (50, 60, 70 °C).

The parameters of the model were found to be greatly affected by sample thickness and air temperature. The effect of moisture content on the porosity of three fruits (namely avocado, prune and strawberry) was also investigated. A simple mathematical model was used to correlate porosity with moisture content. It was found that porosity increased with decreasing moisture content.

Samples of three fruits (avocado, prune and strawberry) were investigated to estimate color changes during conventional drying at 70 °C. A first order kinetic model was fitted to experimental data with great success. It is found that the color of avocado and strawberry change while the color of prune remains the same.

Furthermore, the water sorption isotherms of three fruits (avocado, prune and strawberry) at 25° temperature were determined experimentally and the parameters at the GAB equation were evaluated by means of non-linear regression analysis. The use of the above equation produced a very good fit.     

MICROWAVE VACUUM DRYING KINETICS OF SOME FRUITS

Microwave vacuum drying kinetics of three fruits (namely, apple, kiwi and pear) were studied by introducing an one-parameter empirical mass transfer model, involving a characteristic parameter (drying constant), as a function of process variables. The model was tested with data produced in a microwave oven equipped with vacuum apparatus, using non-linear regression analysis. The investigation involved a wide range of microwave power and vacuum pressure levels. The parameters of the model considered were found to be greatly affected by the microwave power level while vacuum pressure affected slightly the process.     

MIMO Control of Conveyor-Belt Drying Chambers

ABSTRACT

The development of MlMO control systems for individual conveyor-belt drying chambers was studied for the case of industrial units used for the moisture removal from wet raisins. The process was considered to be a 2×2 open-loop system in which material moisture content and temperature at the exit of the drying chamber were to be controlled. Its dynamic behavior was investigated via digital simulation of the corresponding process mathematical model which involves 6 state variables. The effect of several manipulated and load variables on process outputs was explored by examining the corresponding responces obtained when the input variables were step forced into the non-linear dryer model simulator around the operational point studied. Reliable transfer functions for each interaction module were produced, based on simulated data and process basic constants. The best control configuration was selected bv deriving the RGA values of each one that was based on its frequency information. The propsed scheme, used steam and fresh air flowrates as manipulated variables. This scheme was found to imply insignificant interactions between material moisture content and temperature loops. The suggested pairing was material moisture content controlled by steam flowrate and fresh air flowrate controlling material temperature. Single-loop PI-feedback controllers were installed in each loop and tuned by Ziegler-Nichols techniques. The closed-loop system performance was examined by suitably introdcuing step changes to both set-points as well as to process disturbances. The overall control system performance proved to be quite satisfactory.     

Optimization of Fluidized Bed Drying Process of Green Peas Using Response Surface Methodology

The fluidized bed drying process of green peas was optimized using the response surface methodology for the process variables: drying air temperature (60–100°C), tempering time (0–60 min), pretreatment, and mass per unit area (6.3–9.5 g/cm²). The green peas were pretreated by pricking, hot water blanching, or chemical blanching. Product quality parameters such as rehydration ratio, color, texture, and appearance were determined and analyzed. Second-order polynomial equations, containing all the process variables, were used to model the measured process and product qualities. Rehydration ratio was influenced mostly by pretreatment followed by tempering time, temperature, and mass per unit area. Pretreatment and mass per unit area significantly affected color and texture. Higher levels of temperature and lower levels of tempering time and mass per unit area increased the rehydration ratio. The optimum process conditions were derived by using the contour plots on the rehydration ratio and sensory scores generated by the second-order polynomials. Optimum conditions of 79.4°C drying air temperature, 35.8-min tempering time, pretreatment of the once pricked peas with chemical blanching in a solution of 2.5% NaCl and 0.1% NaHCO₃, and mass per unit area of 6.8 g/cm² were recommended for the fluidized bed drying of green peas. At these conditions the rehydration ratio was 3.49.     

Prediction of Ozone Concentration in Ambient Air Using Multilinear Regression and the Artificial Neural Networks Methods

ABSTRACT

This article presents the results of the statistical modeling of the ground-level ozone concentration in the air in the close vicinity of the city of Zrenjanin (Serbia). This study is aimed at defining the dependence of ozone concentration on the following predictors: SO₂, CO, H₂S, NO, NO₂, NOx, PM₁₀, benzene, toluene, m,p-Xylene, o-Xylene and ethylbenzene concentration in the air, as well as on the meteorological parameters (the wind direction, the wind speed, air pressure, air temperature, solar radiation, and RH). Multiple linear regression analysis (MLRA) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) were used as the tools for the mathematical analysis of the indicated occurrence. The results have shown that ANNs provide better estimates of ozone concentration on the monitoring site, whereas the multilinear regression model once again has proven to be less efficient in the accurate prediction of ozone concentration.     

Numerical Spray Model of the Fluidized Bed Coating Process

In this study, a new model for the batch top-spray fluidized bed coating process is presented. The model is based on the one-dimensional (axial) discretization of the bed volume into different control volumes, in which the dynamic heat and mass balances for air, water vapor, droplets, core particles, and coating material were established. The coupling of the droplet phase's mass and heat transfer terms with the gas and solid phases was established by means of a droplet submodel in which droplet trajectories were individually simulated.

The model calculation method combines a Monte Carlo technique for the simulation of the particle exchange with the first-order Euler's method for solving the heat and mass balances, enabling the prediction of both the dynamic coating mass distribution and the one-dimensional (axial) thermodynamic behavior of the fluidized bed during batch operation. The simulation results were validated using experimental two-dimensional spatial air temperature and air humidity distributions, which were measured in a fluidized bed pilot reactor using a scanning probe.

Sensitivity analysis was carried out to study the effect of controllable process variables, such as fluidization air and atomization air properties, as well as the properties of the spraying liquid upon the simulated dynamic temperature and humidity distributions. Also, the effects of relevant process variables on growth rate uniformity and process yield were studied. Based on these sensitivity studies it was concluded that nozzle parameters, such as air pressure and positioning with respect to the bed, are as important as the fluidization air properties (humidity, temperature, and flow rate) for the coating growth rate uniformity and process yield.     

KINETICS AND TECHNOLOGY OF SPRAY DRYING

ABSTRACT

A regression analysis wae conducted on experimental data obtained during the testing of a solid desiccant dehumidifier (Bharathan et a1.) at the Solar Enerav Research Institute (SERI has since been renamed the National Renewable Energy Laborstory). The data obtained was studied using statietical techiiquee to determine the regression equation for the temperature and humidity at the processed air outlet of the dehumidifier. These variables determine the cooling capacity and efficiency (Coefficient of Performance) of any deeiccant cooling cycle. The analysis ie uaed to determine the relative Impact the input parametere have on the outlet temperature and humidity.     

An Experimental Test of the Concept of the Characteristic Drying Curve Using the Thin-Layer Method

ABSTRACT

The drying behaviour of paticles ( purolit and silica gel) was studied using the thin-layer method described by Langrish et al ( 1). The experiments covered inlet air temperatures between 100 and 150°C, inlet air humidities from 0.02 to 0.052 kgkg¹ superficial air velocities between 3.8 and 10.8 ms^-1, with layer thicknem of 2 – 10mm. No constant mle period war observed. Characteristic drying curves were found to fall within a narrow band fur these ranges of process variables, for material of uniform size and shape and with relative moisture content defined in terms of the end of the induction period. Small changes in panicle shape, particle size distribution and uniformity of particle layers had negligible infuence on the drying kinetics. However, reduction in particle size from 5.2mm diameter to 0.86mm had a marked effect: the normalised drying rate at a given relative moisture content became larger as the particle size became smaller. This phenomenon is attributed to an increase in available contact area per unit volume with diminishing particle size. The thin-layer technique thus appears to be a useful and robust way of obtaining a general characteristic drying curve for a given particulate material. A review of various works ( Keey, 2) has shown that the concept ofa characteristic drying curve may be used to describe the drying kinetics of paniculate materials below 20mm in size for modest changes in process variables ( air temperature, humidity and velocity). This concept has found to be very useful to help model drying processes of a wide variety of particulates, cross-circulated slabs, heaped loaw fabric fibres, hygroscopic ceramic cylinders and discrete vermiculite particles. The drying of a single particle has been related lo the drying kinetics of a fluidized bed by the use of this ida. ( Tsotsas, 7). A grater understanding of the properties of the characteristic drying curve will provide a greater confidence in applying thir concept more generally to process design and the analysis of industrial drying equipment. The goal of this study was to examine further the experimental and theoretical foundations of the characteristic drying curve, using thin-layer methods.     

DYNAMIC SIMULATION AND CONTROL OF CONVEYOR-BELT DRYERS

Abstract

The dynamic behavior of conveyor-belt dryers involving externally controlled heat and mass transfer phenomena has been studied via digital simulation. The investigation concerned an industrial dryer used for the moisture removal from wet raisins. The dryer consisted of three drying chambers and a cooling section, all involving the same conveyor belt. For each chamber, perfect temperature control was assumed for the drying air temperature, while its humidity was left uncontrolled. The effect of material temperature and moisture content at the entrance of the dryer and the drying air temperature on material temperature and moisture content at the exit of the dryer and the corresponding drying air humidity, have been explored by step forcing the disturbance and manipulated variables in the non-linear dryer model simulator. Results showed that material moisture content at the exit of the dryer is greatly affected by material moisture content at the entrance as well as by the drying air temperature. Reliable transfer functions for each process module were obtained by fitting several transfer function models on the simulated data using a least-squares approach. It was found that when input material moisture content could be instantly measured, the system responded slowly enough so that excellent control could be achieved for material moisture content at the exit of each chamber. In this case a Pi-feedback cascade temperature controller was used. When a 15 sec delay measuring sensor was introduced, poor performance was observed. A simplified lead-lag feedforward controller, added to the system, in conjunction with the primary Pi-feedback cascade controller, resulted in good control performance of the delay sensor system.     

INFLUENCE OF PROCESS CONDITIONS ON THE DRYING RATE OF CASSAVA CHIPS IN A SOLAR SIMULATOR

ABSTRACT

Experiments were carried out in a solar simulator to study the influence of air temperature (25-40°C), air relative humidity (40-80%), air velocity (0.95-2.2 m/s), radiation intensity (0-916 W/m²), and loading density (10-30 kg/m²) on the drying rate of a bed of cassava chips (2×2×2 cm). Well-known thin-layer drying equations were fitted to the experimental data, and the empirical constants were used in a statistical analysis of the influence of process conditions on the drying rate. The air temperature, air velocity, radiation intensity, and loading density influenced the drying rate significantly (p=0.05). The effects of the air temperature and the radiation intensity were attributed to the temperature-dependent diffusion of moisture within the chips, while the effect of the air velocity was ascribed to the resistance to mass transfer at the air-chip interface. Equations were presented to express the empirical constants as functions of the process variables.     

Ultrasound-assisted convective drying of apples at different process conditions

ABSTRACT

The aim of this article was to study the influence of drying parameters like air temperature and velocity on the effectiveness of convective (CV) and ultrasound-assisted convective drying. The apple samples were used as the testing material by drying at air temperatures of 313 and 323?K and three different air velocities: 2, 3, and 4?m/s. The drying kinetics, the quality of dried products, and the energy consumption in each drying process were analyzed. The model of drying elaborated by authors was performed to estimate numerically the effect of ultrasound enhancement of convective drying. It was found that application of ultrasound significantly accelerates the CV drying, mainly due to “vibration effect,” and the values of drying parameters like air temperature and velocity affect the drying effectiveness in a different way.     

The Influences of Drying Process on Crude Protein Content of Naked Oat Cut Herbage (Avena nuda L.)

The effects of thin-layer drying naked oat cut herbage process (hot air temperature, air velocity, and drying time) on crude protein content were investigated. It was observed that an increase in drying temperature could lead to a significant drop in the crude protein content of naked oat cut herbage. The crude protein content also decreased with an increase in drying time and air velocity, and air velocity had a minimal impact during processing. A thin-layer drying mathematical model of crude protein content for naked oat cut herbage was established. The optimal drying parameters were determined as hot air temperature of 88.6–94.2 ^° C, air velocity of 0.28–0.32 m/s, and drying time of 16.4–20.6 min.     

Study of the CO2 adsorption isotherms on El Hicha clay by statistical physics treatment: microscopic and macroscopic investigation

ABSTRACT

CO₂ introduction in deep aquifers based on adsorption phenomena represents geological tanks that reduce CO₂ emission. Thus, investigating carbon dioxide adsorption on rocks is becoming more interesting. In our work, carbon dioxide adsorption on El Hicha clay is extensively studied. Experimental data for CO₂ adsorption on this clay are given for the first time. All the corresponding parameters are simulated and interpreted using the multilayer model with two interaction energies. The effect of the key parameters involved in the adequate model on the isotherm curves are thus elucidated and interpreted. The formulation of this model is based on statistical physic formalism. Several hypotheses involving some physicochemical parameters which describe perfectly the adsorption process are used.

The characteristic parameters of the adsorption isotherm such as the number of carbon dioxide molecules per site (n), the receptor site densities (N_M), the number of adsorbed layers (N_L) and the energetic parameters (-ε₁) and (-ε₂) are estimated for the studied systems by a nonlinear least square regression. These parameters are discussed and interpreted considering their temperature dependence. In order to provide new macroscopic interpretations of adsorption mechanisms, three thermodynamic functions are also determined such as the entropy, the internal energy and the free enthalpy of Gibbs from experimental data. Thus, we prove theoretically and experimentally that CO₂ adsorption on El Hicha clay is feasible, spontaneous and exothermic in nature.     

OPTIMIZATION OF CONVECTIVE DRYING PROCESS BASED ON ECONOMIC INDICATORS

ABSTRACT

Drying of lightly salted sardine (Sardinella aurita) was accomplished using three air temperatures (35°C, 40°C, 50°C) and three air velocities (0.5 m/s, 1.5 m/s, 2 m/s); the effects of drying conditions on drying kinetics were studied. As for all biological products, air temperature is the main factor influencing the drying kinetics. However, over a given temperature which seems to correspond to protein modification (50°C), and at a high air flow rate (2 m/s and 2.5 m/s) a crust formation on the surface of the fish, due to the combined effect of heat and salt was observed. This phenomenon inhibited the drying rate. From the drying curves, two falling rate periods were observed. The dimensionless drying rate versus a dimensionless moisture content data were regressed by the Marquardt Levenberg non-linear optimization method to obtain an empirical equation describing the salted sardine characteristic drying curve.     

Microwave Drying of Grapes in a Single Mode Cavity at 2450 Mhz - 11: Quality and Energy Aspects

ABSTRACT

Drying studies were conducted to optimize process parameters (air temperature T. microwave power density P and air velocity u) for quality and energy in microwave drying of grapes using a single mode cavity applicator at 2450 MHz. Thc quality was assessed by several attributes like colour. damage, darkness, crystallized sugar, stickiness and non-uniformity. Colour and damage attributes provided more preeise predietability when compared to the other quality attributes. Microwave dried raisins were lighter in colour and hence were superior to hot air dried samples. Quality attributes were sipnificantlv dependent on T. P and u. Increase in air velocitv resulted in better Quality raisins where as P and T had the opposite effect. Optimum selection of T, P and u was found to be critical to achieve an energy efficient process for a quality product. Response surface models in terms of temperature m d micowave power were obtained for each of the quality attributes. Process optimization of the operating variables through response surface method was performed by imposing certain constraint levels on quality attributes