Continuous and Intermittent Drying of Osmotically Pretreated Melon Pieces: Analysis of Energy Savings and Preservation of Bioactive Compounds

Joan Carlos Alves Pereira, Wilton Pereira da Silva (), Josivanda Palmeira Gomes, Alexandre José de Melo Queiroz, Rossana Maria Feitosa de Figueirêdo, Yaroslávia Ferreira Paiva, Francislaine Suelia dos Santos, Bruno Adelino de Melo, Aluizio Freire da Silva Júnior, Leidjane Matos de Souto, Dyego da Costa Santos, Juanne Queiroz Farias and Antonio Gilson Barbosa de Lima
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Joan Carlos Alves Pereira: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Wilton Pereira da Silva: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Josivanda Palmeira Gomes: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Alexandre José de Melo Queiroz: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Rossana Maria Feitosa de Figueirêdo: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Yaroslávia Ferreira Paiva: Unit of Food Technology Academic, Federal University of Campina Grande, Pombal 58840-000, Brazil
Francislaine Suelia dos Santos: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Bruno Adelino de Melo: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Aluizio Freire da Silva Júnior: Academic Unit of Physics and Mathematics, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Leidjane Matos de Souto: Center for Education and Health (CES), Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Dyego da Costa Santos: Federal Institute of Rio Grande do Norte, Pau dos Ferros Campus, Pau dos Ferros 59900-000, Brazil
Juanne Queiroz Farias: Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil
Antonio Gilson Barbosa de Lima: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Federal University of Campina Grande, Campina Grande 58429-900, Brazil

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-23

Abstract: The objective of this study was to carry out a study on continuous and intermittent drying (intermittency ratio α = 2/3) of osmotically pretreated melon pieces, cut in the form of a parallelepiped. An osmotic dehydration pretreatment was performed using an incubator with mechanical shaking. Drying processes were carried out using an oven with forced air circulation at temperatures of 50 and 70 °C. The data were modeled by means of empirical equations, in order to compare the drying kinetics and analyze the impact of the intermittent process on energy savings and preservation of bioactive compounds in the final product. The experiments were also described using a diffusion model in Cartesian coordinates, with a third-kind boundary condition, in order to analyze the moisture distribution inside each piece of fruit over time. Among the empirical equations analyzed, Page’s was the one that best described the continuous and intermittent drying of osmotically pretreated melon pieces. In order to obtain dried melon, intermittent drying significantly reduced the effective processing time and, consequently, energy consumption, preserving the bioactive compounds more intensely (particularly at a temperature of 50 °C), compared to continuous drying. The diffusion model adequately described all the drying experiments, and it was found that the effective mass diffusivity increased significantly with the application of intermittency.

Keywords: drying models; tempering period; intermittency ratio; moisture distribution; phytochemical quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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