Abstract
The residue generated from the processing of Tacinga inamoena (cumbeba) fruit pulp represents a large amount of material that is discarded without proper application. Despite that, it is a raw material that is source of ascorbic acid, carotenoids and phenolic compounds, which are valued in nutraceutical diets for allegedly combating free radicals generated in metabolism. This research paper presents a study focused on the mathematical modeling of drying kinetics and the effect of the process on the level of bioactive of cumbeba residue. The experiments of cumbeba residue drying (untreated or whole residue (WR), crushed residue (CR) and residue in the form of foam (FR)) were carried out in a fixed-bed dryer at four air temperatures (50, 60, 70 and 80 °C). Effective water diffusivity (Deff) was determined by the inverse method and its dependence on temperature was described by an Arrhenius-type equation. It was observed that, regardless of the type of pretreatment, the increase in air temperature resulted in higher rate of water removal. The Midilli model showed better simulation of cumbeba residue drying kinetics than the other models tested within the experimental temperature range studied. Effective water diffusivity (Deff) ranged from 6.4890 to 11.1900 × 10−6 m2/s, 2.9285 to 12.754 × 10−9 m2/s and 1.5393 × 10−8 to 12.4270 × 10−6 m2/s with activation energy of 22.3078, 46.7115 and 58.0736 kJ/mol within the temperature range of 50–80 °C obtained for the whole cumbeba, crushed cumbeba and cumbeba residue in the form of foam, respectively. In relation to bioactive compounds, it was observed that for a fixed temperature the whole residue had higher retention of bioactive compounds, especially phenolic compounds, whereas the crushed residue and the residue in the form of foam had intermediate and lower levels, respectively. This study provides evidence that cumbeba residue in its whole form can be used for the recovery of natural antioxidant bioactive compounds, mainly phenolic compounds, with the possibility of application in the food and pharmaceutical industries.
Highlights
Cumbeba (Tacinga inamoena) is a plant of the Cactaceae family native to and typical of northeastern Brazil, which produces fruits called cumbeba, the size of a plum, with orange–yellow peel and yellow fleshy pulp that surrounds the seeds
It can be observed that the dimensionless moisture content (MR) decreased continuously over time and, in addition, with the increase in drying temperature, regardless of the pretreatment applied to the residue, the time required for the samples to reach the equilibrium moisture content became progressively shorter
Activation energy varied in the following order: residue in the form of foam > crushed residue > whole residue
Summary
Cumbeba (Tacinga inamoena) is a plant of the Cactaceae family native to and typical of northeastern Brazil, which produces fruits called cumbeba, the size of a plum, with orange–yellow peel and yellow fleshy pulp that surrounds the seeds. The use of cumbeba residue to generate a product with high added value, as has been done with other agro-industrial by-products, for example the extraction of antioxidant bioactive compounds [12,13,14] and natural dyes [15,16,17], among many other materials [18,19,20,21], can lead to economic gains, prevent or reduce environmental problems caused by the direct disposal of waste in the environment and contribute to the development of a more profitable and sustainable cumbeba production chain. Drying has been frequently used before the extraction of antioxidant bioactive compounds from agro-industrial by-products [26,27,28]
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