Abstract

PUENTE-DIAZ, LUIS; ECHEGARAY- PACHECO, ERIC; CASTRO- MONTERO, EDUARDO  and  DI SCALA, KARINA. APPLICATION OF MATHEMATHICAL MODELS TO INFRARED ASSISTED DRYING PROCESS OF LEMON WASTE (CITRUS LIMON (L.) BURM. F. CV. GENOVA). Dyna rev.fac.nac.minas [online]. 2013, vol.80, n.181, pp.91-97. ISSN 0012-7353.

Agroindustrial wastes are a major environmental problem worldwide. Due to high quality requirements, commercialization of export lemons generates huge amounts of wastes. Lemon wastes have fiber, pectin, potassium, calcium and vitamin C. Therefore, it is important to develop alternative processing methods to add value and improve their shelf life. The aim of this work was to apply infrared drying, as an emergent technology, to study the effect of drying temperature on the drying kinetics of lemon waste at 30, 40 and 50°C. Six thin layer models found in literature were used to represent the experimental drying kinetics. Based on statistical tests, the Logarithmic model presented the best fit. Values of moisture effective diffusivities were in the range of 9.45x 10^-10 - 3.71× 10^-9 m/s². The value of activation energy was 55.90 kJ/mol.

Keywords : infrared drying; thin layer mathematical modeling; effective diffusion coefficient; by-products; lemon.

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