Investigation of the Performance of a Hybrid Dryer Designed for the Food Industry.

Soner Çelen,Mehmet Karataser

doi:10.3390/foods8020081

Abstract

In this study, a microwave energy conveyor dryer with the support of solar energy was researched with respect to its usability in the food industry and its short drying time and low energy requirements. The hot air produced using a collector (which was designed in the shape of a hemisphere for the purpose of getting high efficiency from solar energy) was transferred to a conveyor drying chamber operating with microwave energy at the speed of 0.245 m/min. Drying kinetics of the selected black radishes for the experiments were determined using samples sliced into 4, 6, and 8 mm. At the end of the drying, the duration and specific energy consumption for the drying process as well as color changes in the samples were measured, and the collector’s efficiency was calculated. In addition, as a result of statistical analysis, the most suitable model among the seven drying models was determined.

Highlights

The drying process is the removal of water or other liquids from gases, liquids, or solids
In this work, drying behaviors of black radish were examined with three different microwave power levels (0.7 kW, 1 kW, and 1.4 kW), different thicknesses (4 mm, 6 mm, and 8 mm) and different collector temperatures
Temperature is changing depending on both hot air coming from the tunnel and effects of solar rays (Figure 2)

Summary

Introduction

The drying process is the removal of water or other liquids from gases, liquids, or solids. The term “drying” refers to the removal of water or other volatile substances from additives by thermal methods [1]. The aim of drying is to reduce the volume and the weight to facilitate transportation, to sterilize the products, and to produce materials that provide the desired conditions. In terms of energy saving, the major percentage of energy consumption in many industries is formed by the energy consumed for drying processes. With the usage of new technologies it is possible to save a considerable amount of energy. The main factor to be taken into consideration when selecting a drying process and a dryer is to use minimum energy and a maximum drying rate to obtain the product with the desired qualities [2]

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