ABSTRACT
Drying is a complicated process involving simultaneous heat, mass, and momentum transfer phenomena, and effective models are necessary for process design, optimization, energy integration, and control. The development of mathematical models to describe drying processes has been a topic of many research studies for several decades. Undoubtedly, the observed progress has limited empiricism to a large extent. However, the design of dryers is still a mixture of science and practical experience. Thus the prediction of Luikov that by 1985 “would obviate the need for empiricism in selecting optimum drying conditions,” represented an optimistic perspective, which, however, shows that the efforts must be increased [1]. Presently, more and more sophisticated drying models are becoming available, but a major question that still remains is the measurement or determination of the parameters used in the models. The measurement or estimation of the necessary parameters should be feasible and practical for general applicability of a drying model.
