Abstract
ABSTRACT Solanum paniculatum L. (jurubeba) is among the numerous medicinal plants used by the Brazilian population, and the use of its leaves is quite popular, in the form of tea, as a remedy against hangovers after excessive consumption of alcohol and food, besides being used in the form of ointments as healing agent and also in the treatment of liver and digestive problems. Leaves of medicinal plants usually have a high moisture content, requiring its reduction by drying, so that the product can be stored safely until its processing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the drying kinetics of jurubeba leaves and to determine the effective diffusion coefficient and activation energy during drying. Jurubeba leaves were dried at different air temperatures (30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 °C) and speed (0.4 and 0.8 m s-1). The Midilli model satisfactorily fitted to the observed data of drying of jurubeba leaves for all air conditions. Increasing the drying air temperature and speed reduced the drying time and increased the effective diffusion coefficient. For the air temperature range from 40 to 70 °C, as the drying air speed increases, the activation energy for the drying of the jurubeba leaves is reduced.
Highlights
Solanum paniculatum L. is a neotropical plant very common in Brazil and other countries such as Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina, which is used in traditional medicine and for food purposes (Vieira Júnior et al, 2015)
Considering the mathematical models with relative mean errors (P) below 10% as adequate to accurately estimate the data observed during drying (Mohapatra & Rao, 2005), the only model that can be used to represent the drying process of jurubeba leaves for all drying air conditions evaluated in the present study is the Midilli model (7), because it is the only one that meets this criterion for all drying air conditions (Table 2)
Alves et al (2017), Gasparin et al (2017) and Martins et al (2018), in studies similar to the present study, working with leaves of Hyptis suaveolens, Mentha piperita and Morus nigra L. respectively, studied the drying kinetics of these medicinal plants at different drying air temperatures and speeds and verified that the Midilli model was the one that best fitted to the observed data for all drying air conditions
Summary
Solanum paniculatum L. (jurubeba) is a neotropical plant very common in Brazil and other countries such as Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina, which is used in traditional medicine and for food purposes (Vieira Júnior et al, 2015). (jurubeba) is a neotropical plant very common in Brazil and other countries such as Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina, which is used in traditional medicine and for food purposes (Vieira Júnior et al, 2015). The drying of leaves of medicinal plants has been studied by several researchers, aiming to provide technical information of this important post-harvest stage for the more efficient processing of these products. Most studies of drying of leaves of medicinal plants evaluate only the effect of different drying air temperatures on the process (Reis et al, 2012; Goneli et al, 2014; Silva et al, 2015; Melo et al, 2016; Silva et al, 2017)
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