Drying Kinetics of Chilli Pepper in a force Convection Indirect Solar Drying

摘要

In this study the experimental study was performed to determine the thin layer drying of Chilli pepper in a force convection indirect solar drying. The results for typical clear and cloudy days were presented. The drying curves are formed by the measurement of the material moisture content as a function of time. The system consists of two main parts: heat collector and the food drying cabinet. The food cabinet was made out of the plywood, this plywood was painted as in black color and it is been sealed carefully by using quality wood glue. Polystyrene is used at the upper part and lower part of the food cabinet so that the air will flow to the compartment, this will reduce the turbulence flow and then it will let the smoother air flow in and out of the food cabinet. Twelve different thin layer drying models were compared with respect to their coefficient of determination (R~2), reduced chi-square (x~2) and root mean square error (RMSE) were selected to better estimate the drying curves. The performance of these models was investigated by non-linear regression analysis using statistical computer program (SPSS package). The entire models were showed a good fit to the drying data. However, the Page drying model was showed a better fit to the experiment data among other models.