Diffusion of Moisture in Burley Tobacco Bales During Storage

Abstract

ABSTRACT Amodel to describe long-term moisture diffusion in burley tobacco bales was developed from the vapor diffusion equation. The model agreed better with experimental results when the initial moisture content was at the high and normal level than when the initial bale moisture contents were low. When the initial moisture content was low the bale was subjected to both significant wetting and drying conditions during the day from the diurnal variation of the ambient relative humidity. Moisture loss from bales was predicted to be 0.4, 7.2, and 11.7% of initial bale weight for bales at low, normal, and high initial moisture contents, respectively, after one year in storage. Diffusion of moisture perpendicular to the leaf lamina was negligible as predicted by the model.