ABSTRACT
The removal of moisture from solids is an integral part of food processing. Almost every food product is dried at least once at one point of its preparation. A dry food product is less susceptible to spoilage caused by the growth of bacteria, molds, and insects. Many favorable qualities and nutritional values of food or feed products may be enhanced by drying. Food products are dried for improved milling, mixing, or segregation. A food product is in equilibrium with its surroundings when its internal vapor pressure becomes in equilibrium with the outside vapor pressure. The moisture content at which the food material demonstrates a change from constant rate drying to falling rate drying is called the critical moisture content. The size of food particles and its variation play a very important role in the design of a drying system.
