Investigation and modeling of drying kinetics of some wild fruits grown in Elazig region

Proper drying techniques could reduce agricultural products losses. The main objective in drying of agricultural products is the moisture content reduction to a level that would prevent rotting and mildewing while allowing safe storage over an extended period. The introduction of new types of dryers in developing countries can reduce agricultural products' deterioration and improve the quality of the dried products signifi cantly when compared to the traditional methods of drying such as sun or shade drying. A deep knowledge about the behavior of drying kinetics of particular product to be dried is useful for the optimization of the drying performance. The kinetics of moisture transfer during the drying process depends on operational conditions such as temperature, humidity and velocity of the drying air. Several researchers have investigated the influence of drying conditions on drying kinetics of various agricultural products in order to evaluate different models for describing the thin–layer drying features.