Modeling of Structural and Quality Changes during Drying of Vegetables: Application to Red Sweet Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.)

Introduction ........................................................................................................ 537

Mathematical Models and Simulation ........................................................... 538

Results and Discussion ..................................................................................... 539

Batch Drying ............................................................................................... 539

Continuous Drying .................................................................................... 540

Conclusions......................................................................................................... 540

Notation............................................................................................................... 541

Acknowledgments ............................................................................................. 542

References ........................................................................................................... 542

During recent years an important improvement in the knowledge of the

dehydration process has occurred. Simulation programs of the mathematical

models that represent heat and mass transfer during drying have allowed

contemporary researchers to substitute expensive experimental work for

faster and accurate results as well as to predict the effect of relevant process

variables on the performance of the process itself.