Energy Food Nexus Research Articles

Response of remote sensing-based climatic indicators to drought conditions during El Niño events and implications for water–food–energy nexus

ABSTRACT Hydrometeorological extremes, such as droughts, are a major threat to society and can have extensive damaging effects. In this study, daily rainfall estimates from the Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) quasi-global rainfall dataset were used to calculate the Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI) for the assessment of meteorological drought in Southern Province, Zambia. Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) imagery (250 m resolution) from MODIS-Terra, for the period 2000–2021, were used to derive the Standardised Vegetation Index (SVI) in order to assess agricultural drought. The Mann–Kendall trend test and Sen's slope were used to determine the spatial-temporal trends and their magnitudes. This study demonstrated that the droughts of the Southern Province of Zambia can be classified into two categories: regressive and aggressive droughts. Regressive droughts are associated with moderate to strong El Niño events. Although El Niño events undermine water security, regressive droughts tend to result in resilient vegetation owing to residue soil moisture. In contrast, aggressive droughts are characterised by an increase in drought intensity as the season progresses. Water security prospects in the region should focus on climate-smart approaches, such as managed aquifer recharge, to ensure water availability even under extreme drought conditions.

A bibliometric analysis of water footprint in China and abroad: research hotspots and frontiers

ABSTRACT The water footprint (WF) serves as a vital tool for quantifying human water resource consumption and is extensively utilized for water allocation analysis and management. This study employs CiteSpace to visualize literature from the Web of Science and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure from 2000 to 2023. Initially, quantitative analysis identified the characteristics of WF. Keyword analysis then elucidated the similarities, differences, and temporal-spatial changes in domestic and international research hot spots. Additionally, co-cited literature networks systematically explored research frontiers in the WF field. China and foreign countries share common research themes while maintaining distinct characteristics. Specifically, the research results show that: (1) Chinese researchers keep up with the pace of international research, and the research results in the field of WF are updated quickly; (2) environmental impact, water–food–energy nexus, and gray WF have attracted attention globally. The international research focus is on the renewal of WF methodology. In contrast, Chinese researchers are more inclined to use methods on water-saving strategies and driving factors. (3) The research frontier mainly focuses on the updating of WF assessment methods and sustainable water use.

Synthesis of multinational marine aquaculture and clean energy co-location

Marine co-location, i.e., multiple fixed ocean activities operating in the same place and at the same time, can maximize the space- and resource-use efficiency in crowded seascapes. While interest grows, commercial use is nascent and the collective benefits or limitations of co-locating aquatic food and clean energy remains scattered throughout the literature. In this study, we synthesize multinational findings of co-location scientific publications (N = 102) to better understand the patterns and knowledge gaps at the co-located ocean food-energy nexus. We track and compare food (aquaculture) and energy (tidal, offshore wind, and wave) co-located ocean activities, noting the focus (e.g., ecological), motivation (e.g., impact/risk), and assessment type (e.g., modeling), as well as nine key metrics of interest (depth, distance from shore, aquaculture yield, etc.), mainly for aquaculture co-location. We found the number of annual co-location publications increased over time and space but are largely concentrated in the North Sea (n = 39). We also found about half of publications include aquaculture, one-third of publications report at least one metric – reporting aquaculture yield was particularly rare (n = 1) – and few studies focused on impact/risk (n = 7). However, conducting a targeted post-hoc evaluation of North Sea gray literature (N = 61), due to this region’s importance in the field, showed more coverage of impacts/risk (e.g., liability) and similar attention to aquaculture. Of the scientific papers that did report metrics, the ranges of depth and distance exceeded those reported for standalone sectors, indicating co-location could be facilitating a “push” of ocean activities into farther offshore and/or deeper exposed waters. Ultimately, while aquaculture is commonly cited in the co-location literature, the shortage of metrics, like aquaculture yield, and possible impact/risk evaluations – though gray literature can provide critical insights – emphasizes the need for knowledge sharing and modeling to address and explore the uncertainty, especially for co-located aquaculture production. This study provides a needed snapshot of marine co-location, particularly in emerging regions, highlighting gaps in understanding aquaculture-energy potential in the oceans.

Country Typologies According to the Impact of Geopolitical and Health Crises on the Energy-Food Nexus

Country Typologies According to the Impact of Geopolitical and Health Crises on the Energy-Food Nexus

Field Assessment of Vertical Bifacial Agrivoltaics with Vegetable Production: A Case Study in Lahore, Pakistan

Sustainable energy and food production face significant challenges due to the increasing population, land-use conflicts, and rapidly changing environmental conditions. Coupling solar energy and food production on the same land (Agrivoltaics; AV) could revolutionize the sustainable food-energy nexus and the land ecosystem. We explore a vertical AV system in Lahore using bifacial modules and vegetables, including okra, calabash, and potato, which is the 1st field assessment of AV in the semi-arid climate of Pakistan. Food-energy performance and microclimate were monitored across multiple seasons for the AV system having 10.5 kW nominal power capacity covering a land area of ∼85 m2. Results were compared with reference systems, including an adjacent full sun crop treatment and a nearby rooftop photovoltaic (PV) system of matched capacity installed at a standard south-tilted orientation. Crop rotation includes okra and calabash, which were grown in summer, and potato in the winter. The net biomass AV yield for okra and calabash was reduced by 15.97 % and 38.17 %, respectively, while potato yield increased by ∼8.7 % relative to the corresponding yield in the control treatment. The annual energy production for the vertical bifacial AV system was reduced by ∼25 % compared to the rooftop PV system, which is attributed mainly to the difference in their tilt and orientation. The microclimate measurements showed 26 % more soil moisture and 0.5 °C reduced air temperature for AV treatment relative to the control, demonstrating potential synergies between solar energy and crops. The soiling measurements at the AV and rooftop locations showed 1.9 % and 1.5 % daily energy loss due to the dust effect. These results indicate that AV systems offer sustainable solutions for the food-energy nexus to cater to the demands of the expanding cities.

The dilemma of water, food, and greener energy nexus: A novel context of COP27 for G20 economies

AbstractIn the contemporary world, achieving sustainable food production has become an urgent task for the international community and policymakers due to the rapidly growing social challenges of mankind. Sustainable food production practices aid countries in adapting to the challenges posed by climate change, thereby ensuring a better and more sustainable future for all. This study examines the impact of land use, energy efficiency (ENE), water productivity (WP), renewable energy consumption (REC), and gross domestic product (GDP) on sustainable food production in G20 nations over the period of 1998–2020. We use quantile regression approaches to capture potential heterogeneity across various food value‐added distribution quantiles. The results show that arable land, WP, GDP, ENE, and REC are important factors affecting food value added in G20 nations. However, the nature of the relationship varies across different quantiles, suggesting heterogeneity in the relationships. The results show that ENE, renewable energies, and GDP are positively related to food production. However, arable land and WP are negatively related to food production. The findings can assist policymakers and stakeholders in making informed decisions to increase value added in the agricultural sector while promoting resilience and sustainability.

Sustainable and Circular Hotels and the Water–Food–Energy Nexus: Integration of Agrivoltaics, Hydropower, Solar Cells, Water Reservoirs, and Green Roofs

The hotel industry in Iran faces critical challenges that underscore the urgent need for sustainable practices, specifically in the realms of energy, water, and food. Despite industry growth, a mere three percent of hotels fall into the five- and four-star categories, emphasizing the need for widespread adoption of sustainable practices. Focused on Ramsar in Mazandaran, the study underscores the importance of eco-friendly strategies to tackle challenges related to the food–water–energy nexus. Employing the SCOC, Fuzzy BWM, and Z-MARCOS methods, the research proposes a robust framework for evaluating hotel development strategies. The case study reveals a concentration of hotels in Khorasan Razavi, Mazandaran, and Tehran, urging prioritization of sustainable practices in these regions. Analyzing Ramsar’s climate, the study suggests leveraging solar energy and implementing green roofs, emphasizing an integrated approach to achieve eco-friendly hotel construction. Furthermore, the research provides a prioritized set of strategies based on SCOC, aligning with criteria regarding the water–energy–food nexus. It emphasizes internal strengths, opportunities, and strategic technology partnerships while acknowledging external challenges such as political stability and climate change risks. The discussion introduces an Importance–Performance Analysis (IPA) to guide managerial decisions, presenting an insightful perspective for effective strategy implementation in Iran’s evolving hotel industry.

Rural and Urban Transitions with Biogas and Biomethane in Brazil: a Water Energy-Food Nexus Analysis

Brazil has historical concerns about renewable sources of energy, mainly because it is the largest tropical country in the world, receiving intense solar radiation, which is the basis of biomass production. In addition, the country has exceptional soil and climate conditions and great biodiversity. Agriculture and livestock activities are very representative in the Brazilian economy and produce usable biomass, which entail renewable sources of energy and the need for residue management. In this context, biogas represents a basic energy source; it is generated via planned treatment of animal, human and industrial wastes. This has two main results: a) the generation of electric, thermal, and vehicular (biomethane) energy; and b) the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and resultant mitigation of global warming. This paper assesses agricultural biogas projects being developed by Itaipu Binational, the second largest hydroelectric power generation company in the world, which has diversified its energy production from hydropower into other renewable sources such as biogas. In addition to promoting environmental and economic benefits, it promotes local social development, since the process for biogas production constitutes and sustains a relatively complex supply chain, requiring local skilled labor, technical and scientific support, and environmental awareness in the population. We conclude with implications of the Itaipu biogas case example for a range of other contexts.

Soil physics matters for the land–water–food–climate nexus and sustainability

AbstractSoil is a complex ecosystem within which many species interact and where physicochemical and geological processes occur at different spatiotemporal scales, with strong interactions taking place between ecological and management processes. Soil processes affect the qualities of the food and water that we eat and drink, the regulation of greenhouse gases, and are the foundation of our habitation and transportation infrastructures. However, it is estimated that over 2 billion hectares of lands are degraded, with a further 12 million hectares degraded each year causing the annual loss of 24 billion tons of fertile soil. Soil degradation negatively affects the well‐being of over 3 billion people, costing more than 10% of the annual global GDP via the loss of ecosystem services, and reducing the productivity of 23% of the global terrestrial area. The sustainable management of soil ecosystems is, therefore, fundamental to global food, water, and energy security, especially under increasingly unpredictable weather patterns caused by climate change. The land–water–food–energy nexus is central to sustainable development and soil inextricably links these critical domains. Stakeholders and decision‐makers in all four domains are necessarily focusing on the effects of soil degradation on climate change, water resource management, and food production as key to the development of sustainable agricultural practices and policies. A properly integrated approach to managing rural soils is thus required to ensure global water, food, and energy security, whilst increasing and protecting biodiversity. This special issue collects 15 papers on recent advances on soil physical‐, hydrological‐, and biological processes, and linkages with agroecosystem sustainability across experiments, field observations, and methodological breakthroughs.

Economic trade-offs in marine resource use between offshore wind farms and fisheries in Scottish waters

The rapid expansion of offshore wind farms (OWFs) has prompted growing concerns about the extent to which competition over the marine resource causes trade-offs within the energy-food nexus. Reflecting this concern, the paper develops a novel marine resource allocation module which augments a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model, calibrated on Scottish data. This allows simulations with varying degrees of differential productivity of the marine resource across alternative uses. Simulation results with the model show that increasing OWFs can impose substantial negative impacts on seafood supply. Extensive analysis is undertaken to test the sensitivity of the model results to changes in the heterogeneity of the marine resource between sectors and the degree of substitution between capital and the marine resource in the competing sectors. The outcomes of this analysis support policies to develop the integrated management of food and energy production in the marine environment. This includes spatial integration and the use of tools such as co-location in policy implementation. They also highlight the potential for the substitution of capital for the marine resource in the OWF sector as a means of substantially reducing the negative impact on the Fishing sector.

Sustainability indexes in water–food–energy nexus to develop strategies with respect to virtual water

Abstract The management of water resources requires a correct understanding of the simultaneous management of food and energy resources. The framework of water–food–energy correlation with the approach of sustainability of resources and uses analyzes the combined management and exploitation of water, food, and energy resources with the help of scenario planning. In addition to sustainability concepts, environmental costs such as the emission of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels and its impact on the environment are also discussed. In this research, according to the five defined indicators and based on the potential of using solar energy and the possibility of exploiting renewable energy sources such as solar energy, various management scenarios have been developed. After examining the virtual water management model developed in the Hunan basin as a case study, the development of the water–food–energy nexus model and its calibration, and four scenarios including improving water use efficiency, energy saving, increasing food productivity, and nexus sustainability were developed. The results showed that the nexus strategy can provide sustainability goals according to the weight of each component. After the combined scenario, improving the efficiency of water consumption can be the component with the highest priority in the decision-making model in dry areas.

Waterlogging and salinity: Cause and effect in the framework of a social, environmental and financial nexus

AbstractWaterlogging and salinity are the effect of something that happened upstream of the point of observation, the cause. The most common responses to solving the twin problem of waterlogging and salinity are installing drainage, providing more irrigation water, cleaning existing outfall drains regularly and maintaining low groundwater levels. This article emphasizes that looking for the cause of the effect would have to be the first action to be undertaken. It may be that a sustainable solution is upstream of the location of the problem. Involving stakeholders' right from the beginning and creating dialogues with all involved throughout the process of initiating, planning, designing, constructing, operating and maintaining a drainage and irrigation system is essential. Performing a triple bottom line within the framework of a water–food–energy nexus is recommended.Areas with waterlogging and salinity are generally well‐known locally (i.e. in‐country), but the extent not necessarily. This is readily overcome by an aerial survey with camera‐equipped drones (remote sensing) or by tapping into the fast libraries of space‐based imagery.Innovative products such as the Capiphon Drainage, the Hydroluis drainpipe–envelope combination and SwarmFarm robots to monitor on‐farm irrigation and drainage are described.

Sustainability of Boro rice cultivation in the canal irrigated command area of India

Abstract A comprehensive assessment and monitoring of rice intensification in canal irrigated command areas and its consequences on groundwater dynamics have enormous importance for the water–food–energy nexus. This study analyzed the spatiotemporal transition of Boro rice cultivation, canal irrigation practices during the cultivation season, and its effect on groundwater of a pioneering multipurpose water resource project in India. The rice maps from 1989 to 2018 were generated from Landsat and Sentinel-2A images using the Iterative Self-Organizing Data Analysis Technique Algorithm (ISODATA), the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) to understand the historical distribution of rice cultivation. The ISODATA clustering algorithm performed well compared to the NDVI and the EVI with medium-resolution satellite images. The impact of Boro rice cultivation on groundwater resources was investigated by considering GLDAS NOAH model-based crop evapotranspiration, rainfall, and canal water supply. The area under rice cultivation increased from 33 to 66% during 1989–2018 due to its higher stress tolerance ability and productivity. However, during the cultivation period, the canal water supply was limited to the upstream and middle section of the command area, irrigating only 19% of the rice-cultivated area on average. The unavailability of the canal water supply during the cultivation season has led to 31 m of groundwater level depletion, which, if unchecked, may lead to overexploitation of groundwater in the middle and lower sections of the command area. The results of this study can be used to identify vulnerable areas that require urgent attention and accurate implementation of any agricultural or hydrological policy.

Towards an operational irrigation management system for Sweden with a water–food–energy nexus perspective

The 2018 drought in Sweden prompted questions about climate-adaptation and -mitigation measures – especially in the agricultural sector, which suffered the most. This study applies a water–food–energy nexus modelling framework to evaluate drought impacts on irrigation and agriculture in Sweden using 2018 and 2019 as case studies. A previous water–food–energy nexus model was updated to facilitate an investigation of the benefits of data-driven irrigation scheduling as compared to existing irrigation guidelines. Moreover, the benefits of assimilating earth observation data in the crop model have been explored. The assimilation of leaf area index data from the Copernicus Global Land Service improves the crop yield estimation as compared to default crop model parameters. The results show that the irrigation water productivities of the proposed model are measurably improved compared to conventional and static irrigation guidelines for both 2018 and 2019. This is mostly due to the advantage of the proposed model in providing evapotranspiration in cultural condition (ETc)-driven guidelines by using spatially explicit data generated by mesoscale models from the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute. During the drought year 2018, the developed model showed no irrigation water savings as compared to irrigation scenarios based on conventional irrigation guidelines. Nevertheless, the crop yield increase from the proposed irrigation management system varied between 10% and 60% as compared to conventional irrigation scenarios. During a normal year, the proposed irrigation management system leads to significant water savings as compared to conventional irrigation guidelines. The modelling results show that temperature stress during the 2018 drought also played a key role in reducing crop yields, with yield reductions of up to 30%. From a water–food–energy nexus, this motivates the implementation of new technologies to reduce water and temperature stress to mitigate likely negative effects of climate change and extremes. By using an open-source package for Google Earth®, a demonstrator of cost-effective visualization platform is developed for helping farmers, and water- and energy-management agencies to better understand the connections between water and energy use, and food production. This can be significant, especially during the occurrence of extreme events, but also to adapt to the negative effects on agricultural production of climate changes.

Food to Grid: Developing a Multi-Value renewable energy investment ecosystem

The paper is focused on building a multi-source small-scale facility that shall be focused on increasing the Renewable Energy Sources share into the grid and at the same time meet the energy, and fresh food needs of the small community that shall operate. The developed facility that shall be utilised is introducing, in practice, a sustainable Energy-Food nexus plan that can be implemented and put into action by the independent power producers and municipalities, meeting also the goal of supporting the grid (a Food to Grid approach). A case study was tested, and it was found that a scheme that couples the curtailed power with a potential mass deployment of vertical farms is beyond sustainable and even with very low marginal price-earnings and the minimum price offered for vertical farms, under specific scenarios can have a full payback in 14 years as an investment. However, in the average optimal case, the investors can get their investments back in 7 years, with an internal rate of return of 17%.

Water–food–energy nexus: Assessing challenges in the trend toward digitalization: The case study of an Italian winemaking industry

AbstractData driven food‐manufacturing systems assure cost reduction, increased efficiency, improved product quality. These elements come together in a virtuous circle of digital transformation centered on sustainability. Viticulture is among the first applications of the smart‐agriculture concept. Precision viticulture has become one of the agribusiness sectors where there is the great attempt to apply the principles of Agrifood 4.0. However, when shifting the focus from raw materials production (e.g., grapes) to their processing into a final product (e.g., wine), measured water and energy consumption fluxes may go in and out a black box rather than being detailed at each operational unit level. Within the food industries panorama, the wine industry may be the most complex, making the upgrade of the traditional wine industry into a digital one burdensome. Indeed, big data centralization is a priority that allows enterprises to transmit real‐time information in terms of process behavior and performance and enables process optimization engineers to spot the energy inefficiencies and the options for process integration for water recycling.The Italian wine industry is strongly committed to sustainability and a case study is here proposed as an example to discuss the challenges in the trend toward digitalization in the winemaking sector.

Energy-food nexus scarcity risk and the synergic impact of climate policy: A global production network perspective

Carbon neutrality has been a global consensus to navigate away from catastrophic climate change. In particular, such climate changes also generate inevitable influences on economic securities, such as energy security and food security, through energy structure transformation etc. Energy and food are essential elements for human beings, and they are naturally linked to sustainable development. Usually, emergency events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, may threaten energy security or food security in a region, the risk of which would be amplified due to the energy-food nexus effect. This is no doubt also a challenge and an opportunity for countries to achieve carbon neutrality. To realize the stable pathways to carbon neutrality, it is important to analyze the energy scarcity risk and food scarcity risk of each industry and country as well as the nexus effect between energy and food. In this paper, we combine multi-regional input-output (MRIO) analysis with network control analysis (NCA) to investigate the dependence degree of each country and region on energy and food resources as well as the risk transmission network of the energy-food scarcity nexus. Base on this, the impact of climate policy on energy-food nexus scarcity risk is analyzed. We found some interesting conclusions. First, regarding the risk transmission network of the energy-food scarcity nexus, China, Germany and the US are the main generators, and the main receptors are Taiwan, Mexico and the Netherlands. These results imply that international trade transfers energy/food scarcity to geographically distant regions via the international supply chain. Second, as for the scarcity risk per unit of output, small economies that rely heavily on imported energy or food (such as Cyprus and Luxemburg) have the highest scarcity risk and are among the top receptors of transmitted risks. We suggest collaborative conservation and management of energy and food resources. Third, the analyses that assess the emission intensity and scarcity risk find that implementation of emission control policies could significantly decrease initial energy scarcity risk and energy-food nexus scarcity risk. This implies that besides emission reduction achievement, climate policies bring co-benefits of energy-food nexus security. Moreover, the co-benefit of energy and food nexus security for low income economies associated with climate policy is much higher than that for high income economies.

Hydro-Politics of Trans-Boundary Water Resources in South Asia: A Water- Energy-food Nexus of Cooperation

Water is a vital resource for 1.9 billion, 24.89 Percent of the total world population residing in the South Asian states and the geopolitics of the region primarily is hydro-politics. The water geography of the region comprises river basins like the Indus, Ganges, Meghna, and Brahmaputra, acting as capillaries responsible for the flow of life in this gigantic region. Allocation of water resources is an external as well internal policy challenge for South Asian states. Taking a view of the water geography of the region and treaties governing trans boundary water flow, the paper aims to address the question of whether the water problem can be dealt only with the traditional security paradigm, focusing on water conflict through the state-centric lens; or the issue can be reflected with the prism of unconventional security paradigms as waters are integral to economic, food, environmental and human security. Human security combined with Liberal-Functionalist approaches may transform the crisis into a prospective scenario of peace and cooperation in the region

Modeling and Optimization of Water–Food–Energy Nexus for Malaysia’s Agricultural Sector

The water–food–energy (WFE) nexus is a strategic system that integrates different separated sectors by using their interconnectedness to reduce trade-offs and allow sustainable development by preventing future resource insecurity. Traditionally, the water, energy, and food sectors operate individually and result in different challenges such as resource scarcity, conflicts in the uses of upstream and downstream hydro systems, and power supply crises due to serious water pollution. Reports so far have only implemented the WFE nexus in countries and cities outside of Malaysia. In addition, there is yet to be a model in literature revolving only on optimizing the agricultural sector’s resources distribution. Hence, this paper aims to develop the first systematic and integrated model for optimal planning of resource allocation in Malaysia’s agricultural sector. The novelty and contribution of this research could be concluded as: (1) multi-objective planning incorporating economic and environmental factors such as economic benefits and carbon emission limit, (2) focusing on the agricultural sector considering geologically-specific crops, livestock, and residents, (3) considering the potential waste recycle systems including wastewater treatment and biomass treatment. The superstructure framework developed based on the case study in Perak, Malaysia aids the implementation of the WFE nexus system locally where trade-offs and synergies between the different sub-units are modelled. From the results, it can be concluded that irrigated paddy crops could contribute to a higher profit compared to palm oil and rubber crops. Thus, future development can be focused on irrigated paddy crops while meeting other constraints and demands to ensure the resources are optimally utilized. The multi-objective optimization solved using MINIMAX algorithm also provides decision-makers with a guideline on how to implement WFE nexus locally in the agricultural sector.

Energy parameters of corn drying in a hot air dryer powered by exhaust gas waste heat: An optimization case study of the food-energy nexus

This paper presents the energy parameters of corn drying in a convective crop dryer powered by exhaust gas waste heat. The empirical study was applied for drying 1,500 g batch size of an indigenous variety of maize grains (corn kernels). The study considered the impact of the drying air temperature and velocity on the energy indices (total and specific energy consumption, electric and thermal energy demand), drying rate, of the crop dryer, and the moisture diffusion coefficient of the studied samples. Tests were run at varying drying air temperatures (50, 55, and 60 °C) and air velocities (1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 m/s). Results obtained show that the drying parameters had a noticeable influence on the rates of heat transfer and moisture diffusion in the maize samples. The average drying rates varied between 0.83 and 1.4 g/min, whereas drying duration ranged from 305 to 515 min. The thermal efficiency of the drying process ranged from 4.23% to 8.07%. Its values had a direct relationship with the drying air temperature and an inverse relationship with the drying air velocity. The specific energy consumption, which varied between 129.95 and 227.63 kWh/kg increased with increasing air temperature and velocity. Drying air temperature had an inverse effect on the values of the electric energy consumption of the dryer system at constant air velocity. The maximum and minimum thermal energy values were obtained as 97.12 and 55.4 kW-hr, respectively. The activation energy and moisture diffusion coefficient values were in the range of 31.75 to 41.05 kJ/mol and 5.77×10−11 to 1.11×10−10 m2/s, respectively for the studied drying conditions. Prospects for commercial applications as well as recommendations for additional studies were stated.