Abstract:

As we know the drying can be defined as the process of removal water or evaporation from a
solution to form a dry solid. It is a process that involves heat and mass transfer. There are three
types of heat transfer which are convection, conduction and radiation. The objectives of the
experiment are to determine the drying rate for different materials and the moisture content, the
variation of the drying process with different air speeds and heater powers, and the relationship
between drying rate and the moisture content. In this experiment we choose carrot as our sample.
In order to run this drying experiment, two type of equipment that been used. For part A, we used
Tray Dryer GUNT HAMBURG CE 130 and for part B we used Oven MEMMERT ULE600. The
measurement of the moisture content is based on the weight of the sample which inversely
proportional with the temperature and time. Thus, the moisture content and the drying rate was
calculated. Finally the graph of moisture content vs time and graph of drying rate vs moisture
content was obtained. Based on the data from the experiment, the mass and moisture content is
decreasing with time, whereas the drying rate is varying rapidly with time.

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Introduction:

Drying in general mean usually means removal of relatively small amounts of water from
material. In drying the water is usually removed as a vapor by air.

In some cases water may be removed by mechanically from solid materials by presses,
centrifuging and other methods. This is cheaper than drying by thermal means for removal of
water. The moisture content of the final dried product varies depending upon the type of product.

Drying is usually the final processing step before packing and makes many materials, such as
soap powders and dyestuffs, more suitable for handling.

Drying processes can be classified as batch, where the material is inserted to the drying
equipment and drying proceeds for a given period of time, or as continuous, where the material is
continuously added to the dryer and dried material continuously removed.

There are different types of drying equipment like:

Tray dryer.

Vacuum-shelf indirect dryers.

Continuous tunnel dryers.

Rotary dryers.

Drum dryers.

Spray dryers.

Heat is added by different ways, such as, by direct contact with heated air at atmospheric
pressure and the water vapor formed I removed by air. The other way is to add the heat indirectly
by contact with a metal wall or by radiation.

Objective:

1.) To determine the drying rate for different materials and the moisture content

2.) To determine the variation of the drying process with different air speeds and heater powers

3.) To determine the relationship between drying rate and the moisture content

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Theory:

Drying can be defined as the process of removal water or evaporation from a solution to form a
dry solid. It is a process that involves heat and mass transfer. There are three types of heat
transfer which are convection, conduction and radiation. Food drying is one of the method to
preserving food and it can help in prevention in growth of bacteria, yeast and molds (Paul & Ed,
n.d.) . If the drying process is carried out correctly, the nutrition of the food, color, flavor and
texture will not be affected to much by the process.

There are many drying food method that can be used at home which oven are drying, sun drying,
air drying and microwave drying. In drying mechanism, heat is transfer to the product to
evaporate liquid, and mass from the product has transfer to surrounding in form of vapor. There
is a categories where heat is added directly with heated air at atmospheric pressure and the water
vapor is removed by the air.

There are two types of dryer which is batch dryer and continuous dryer (Parikh M. , 2014). Batch
dryers operates by passing hot air over the surface of a wet solid that is spread over trays
arranged in trays. This type of dryers are the simplest and least expensive and it also widely used
in the food and pharmaceutical industries. Next is continuous dryers. Continuous dryers are
usually used in chemical and food industries because large volume of product needed to be
produced. Most commonly used is continuous fluid-bed dryers and spray dryers.

Conversion of data to rate of drying curve (C.J., 2003). Data obtained from a batch-drying
experiment are usually obtained as W total weight of wet solid (dry solid plus moisture) at
different times t hours in the drying period. These data can be converted to rate-of-drying data in
the following ways. First, the data are recalculated. If W is the weight of the wet solid in kg total
water plus dry solid and Ws is the weight of the dry solid in kg

Xt = (kg total water) / (kg dry solid)

= (W-Ws) / Ws

For the given constant drying conditions, the equilibrium moisture content X*kg equilibrium
moisture / kg dry solid is determined. Then the free moisture content X in kg free water / kg dry
solid is calculated for each value of Xt :

X = Xt X*

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Using the data calculated from formula above, a plot of free moisture content X versus time t in h
is made, as in Figure 9.5-1a. To obtain the rate-of-drying curve from this plot, the slopes of the
tangents drawn to the curve Figure 9.5-1a can be measured, which give values of dX/dt at given
value of t. The rate R is calculated for each point by

R = - (Ls / A) (dX / dt)

Where R is drying rate in kg H2O/h.m2, Ls kg of dry solid used and A exposed surface area for
drying in m2. For obtaining R from Figure 9.5-1a, a value of L s/A of 21.5 kg/m2 was used. The
drying-rate curve is then obtained by plotting R versus the moisture content, as in Figure 9.5-1b.
Another method for obtaining the rate-of-drying is to first calculate the weight loss X for a t
time.

1. Plot of rate-of-drying curve. In Figure 9.5-1b the rate-of-drying curve for constant-drying
conditions is shown. At zero time, the initial free moisture content is shown at point A. In
the beginning the solid is usually at a colder temperature than its ultimate temperature,
and the evaporation rate will increase. Eventually, at point B, the surface temperature
rises to its equilibrium value. Alternatively, if the solid is quite hot, the rate may start at
point A. This initial unsteady-state adjustment period is usually quite short and it is often
ignored in the analysis if times of drying.

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Apparatus and material

1. Tray dryers
2. Analytical balance
3. Anemometer
4. Stopwatch
5. Carrot
6. Knife
7. Oven

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Procedure:

Using tray dryer

1. All the equipment that used for the experiment were switched on.
2. The empty tray was cleaned before start.
3. The mass of all four empty trays was weighted and the data was recorded.
4. The carrot was cleaned with tap water and cut into pieces about 0.3cm thick.
5. The carrot was spread all over the trays and weighted it again and recorded the data.
6. The temperature was set until 500C then all the four tray filled with carrot was put in the
tray dryer.
7. The initial reading of temperature 1, temperature 2, humidity 1, humidity 2 and the
velocity of the wind was recorded.
8. The reading was recorded for every 10 minutes.
9. Moisture of the carrot was calculated.
10. The graph of the moisture versus the time was plotted.

Using Oven

1. All the equipment that used for the experiment were switched on.
2. The empty tray was cleaned before start.
3. The mass of all two empty trays was weighted and the data was recorded.
4. The carrot was cleaned with tap water and cut into pieces about 0.3cm thick.
5. The carrot was spread all over the trays and weighted it again and recorded the data.
6. The temperature was set until 500C then all the two tray filled with carrot was put in the
oven.
7. The carrot was heated in the oven for 60 minutes.
8. After that, the carrot was taken out from the oven and the mass of the carrot was
weighted and recorded.

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Result:

Part A: Using Tray Dryer GUNT HAMBURG CE 130

Mass of 4 tray = 1389.6 g

Mass of 4 tray and carrot (sample) = 1492.5 g

Mass of wet carrot = 102.9 g

Mass of dry carrot = 1422.2 g 1389.6 g

= 32.6 g

Time Mass of Drying Moistur Fan Temperature Humidity

(min) sample rate e velocity (oC) (%rF)
(g) (s-1) content (m/s) T1 T2 H1 H2
0 102.9 -
10 51.7 0.00258 0.562 1.15 47.2 46.8 7.5 6.6
20 46 0.00028 0.3897 1.76 47.4 46.9 7.5 6.6
30 41.3 0.00024 0.2477 1.72 47.5 46.9 7.5 6.6
40 37.5 0.00019 0.1329 1.81 47.6 47.1 7.5 6.6
50 35.6 0.000096 0.0755 1.73 47.5 47.1 7.5 6.6
60 33.1 - - 1.81 47.6 47.2 7.5 6.6

Part B: Using Oven MEMMERT ULE600

Mass of empty tray = 916. 81 g

Mass tray and carrot = 1066.27 g

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Mass dry carrot = 1014.16 g 916.81 g

= 97.35 g

Graph Moisture Content vs Time

0.6
0.5
0.4

Moisture content (X) 0.3

0.2
0.1
0
0 10 20 30 40

Graph Drying Rate vs Moisture Content

0

Drying rate (s-1) 0

0
7.5499999999999998E-2

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Sample Calculation:

massinitialmass final
1. Moisture content, x = mass final
102.9 g33.1 g
X1 = 33.1 g

= 2.108
51.7 g33.1 g
X2 = 33.1 g

= 0.562
46 g33.1 g
X3 = 33.1 g
= 0.3897
41.3 g33.1 g
X4 = 33.1 g

= 0.2477
37.5 g33.1 g
X5 = 33.1 g

= 0.1329
35.6 g33.1 g
X6 = 33.1 g

= 0.0755

x 1x 2
2. Drying Rate, v = t

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 2.1080.562
V1 = 600

= 0.00258
0.5620.3897
V2 = 600

= 0.00028
0.38970.2477
V3 = 600

= 0.00024
0.24770.1329
V4 = 600

= 0.00019
0.13290.0755
V5 = 600

= 0.000096

Discussion:

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Based on graph mass versus time, it shows that the mass of the carrot are decreasing with time.
This is the same with graph of moisture content versus time, where the moisture content is
decreasing with time.

Drying occurs in three different periods or phases, which can be clearly defined. The first phase
or initial period is where sensible heat is transferred to the product and the moisture contained.
From both graph, the first phase is when the free moisture persists on the surfaces and the rate of
evaporation alters very little as the moisture content reduces. This is seen from the graph at
minute 1 until minute 10. The second phase, or falling rate period, is the phase during minute 10
until 60 which migration of moisture from the inner interstices of each particle to the outer
surface becomes the limiting factor that reduces the drying rate.

Principles of tray dryer states that during the early stages of drying, the conditions in the dryer,
which is at high humidity and moderate temperature, are ideal for the growth of microorganisms.
The quicker the drying time the better the final microbial quality of the product. From the graph
of drying rate versus time, we can see that the changing pattern is not consistent or in mannered
pattern. Hence, it is well said that the drying rates is not depending much upon time.

Conclusion:

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Based on the data plotted on each graph, we can conclude that the moisture content and mass of
the carrot are both decreasing with time. Nevertheless, the drying rates of the carrot are varying
with time.

Recommendation:

In order to get good results, there are a few steps that may be considered. Firstly, the
drying rates can be increased with two different options; by increasing the air flow or increasing
the air temperature. However, the temperature must not be set too high for or may be cause
damage or change to the products. This is true for carrot and most of the fruits, as high
temperature will have the risk of losing delicate flavours or colours.

As a matter fact, fan dryers may suck in fine dust particles in dusty areas, causing
contamination of the product. In very dusty areas, powered dryers may need a filter over the air
inlet.

Good air circulation within the dryer is important, as it reduces drying time and allows
the use of lower temperatures, both of which can prevent the degradation of chemical
constituents during the drying process. The dryer should have well-spaced racks to ensure that all
sides of the plant receive sufficient air flow and the plant material dries evenly. The dryer should
be free from dust, insect and rodents. If there any of these in final product it can lower its value
and make unmarketable.

Reference:

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 1. Geankoplis, C.J. (2003). Transport Process and Separation Process Principle, 4 th Edition.
New York: Prentice Hall.
2. Coulson, M. and Richardson, J.F. (1993). Chemical Engineering: Unit Operations, Vol.
2, 4th Edition. Oxford: Pergamon Press.
3. Parikh, M. (1994). Solid Drying. Retrieved from http:// www.chemengonline.com/solids-
drying-basics-and-applications/?printmode=1

Appendix:

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Figure 1: Tray Dryer GUNT HAMBURG CE 130

Figure 2: Oven MEMMERT ULE600

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Figure 3: Before entering oven

Figure 4: After entering oven

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