Improvements and Evaluation on Bitter Orange Leaves ( Citrus aurantium L.) Solar Drying in Humid Climates

Chan-González Jorge de Jesús, Castillo Téllez Margarita, Castillo-Téllez Beatriz, Lezama-Zárraga Francisco Román, Mejía-Pérez Gerardo Alberto and Vega-Gómez Carlos Jesahel
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Chan-González Jorge de Jesús: Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Campeche, Buenavista 24085, Mexico
Castillo Téllez Margarita: Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Campeche, Buenavista 24085, Mexico
Castillo-Téllez Beatriz: Centro Universitario del Norte, Universidad de Guadalajara, Colotlán 46200, Mexico
Lezama-Zárraga Francisco Román: Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Campeche, Buenavista 24085, Mexico
Mejía-Pérez Gerardo Alberto: Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá 45425, Mexico
Vega-Gómez Carlos Jesahel: Centro Universitario de Tonalá, Universidad de Guadalajara, Tonalá 45425, Mexico

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 16, 1-17

Abstract: Dried, bitter orange leaves are widely used because of their nutritious and medicinal applications. As a result, many technologies have been used to accomplish its drying process. However, drying needs a long time and high energy demand, especially in humid climates. In this paper, bitter orange leaf drying was carried out using thermal and photovoltaic solar energy (integrated system, IS), eliminating the high humidity inside of the drying chamber to improve this process. A regular solar dryer (RD) was also used to compare the kinetics, mathematical modeling, and colorimetry study (as a quality parameter), evaluating both systems’ performances. The drying leaves’ weights were stabilized after 330 min in the RD and after 240 min in the IS, with a maximum drying rate of 0.021 kg water/kg dry matter∙min, reaching a relative humidity of 7.9%. The Page and Modified Page models were the best fitting to experimental results with an Ra 2 value of 0.9980. In addition, the colorimetric study showed a better-preserved color using the IS, with an ∆ E of 9.12, while in the RD, the ∆ E was 20.66. Thus, this system implementation can reduce agroindustry costs by reducing time and energy with a better-quality and sustainable product, avoiding 53.2 kg CO 2 emissions to the environment.

Keywords: solar drying; hybrid solar system; bitter orange leaves; humid climates; colorimetry; mathematical modeling (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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