Abstract
Temperature controlled storage facilitates better preservation of some types of agricultural produce. However, the most effective temperature for storage as well as the duration of storage varies between produce. Therefore, special attention should be concentrated on the storage temperature and its effects on the integrity and longevity of the produce. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of storage temperature and storage period on the quality of castor beans. Castor seeds with a water content of approximately 6.1% (w.b.) were stored for 180 days at temperatures of 15, 25 and 35 °C. The quality of the seeds was evaluated every 45 days throughout the study period by measuring dry matter loss, electrical conductivity, color, and the free fatty acid and peroxide content of the crude oil extracted. Our results indicated that: a) higher storage temperature negatively affect the quality of the seeds and the extracted oil; b) the negative effect of temperature increase with longer storage period; c) the storage temperature of 15 °C least affect the quality of castor bean and the extracted oil.
Highlights
Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) has become a highly versatile and promising crop in recent decades in terms of its highly profitable agroenergy supply chain and capacity to generate employment opportunities directly and indirectly (Poletine et al, 2012; Goneli et al, 2016)
The water content of the castor beans throughout the storage period varied during the study
Throughout the 180 day storage period, the increase in the storage temperature decreased the equilibrium water content of the beans; this occurred because relative humidity decreased as the storage temperature increased and resulted in a lower equilibrium water content (Table 1)
Summary
Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) has become a highly versatile and promising crop in recent decades in terms of its highly profitable agroenergy supply chain and capacity to generate employment opportunities directly and indirectly (Poletine et al, 2012; Goneli et al, 2016). These benefits are due to some unique characteristics of castor bean, including their adaptability to a wide range of environmental conditions across temperate and semi-arid regions, and its high oil content (approximately 45%), which is rich in ricinoleic acid (90%). In Brazil, given the difficult interaction between the field and the commercial sector, generally, the static capacity becomes insufficient to meet the production and, a series of problems appear, compromising both market range and commercialization value (Nascimento et al, 2016)
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