Square slices of sweet potatoes and potatoes were dried in hot air current at temperatures between 40°C and 90°C, and then their drying mechanism and the optimum drying conditions for sweet potatoes were investigated.
From the results shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5, it may be said that if the air conditions are kept constant and the samples to be dried are uniform in thickness, drying time for reducing their moisture content to 20 per cent is approximately equal, independent of the varieties of samples and of the initial moisture content.
As shown in Figs. 6, 7 b and 8, on which drying rate is plotted vs moisture content, drying usually proceeded in four rate periods, namely, a constant rate period, a first falling rate period, a second falling rate period A, and a second falling rate period B.
The shrinkages in evaporating area of samples during such periods are shown below the abovementioned rate curves. Here, too, is shown that the shrinkage proceeded in four stages, roughly corresponding to the said four rate periods.
In the drying of sweet potatoes, it was observed, as shown in Table 1 and Fig. 9 b, that the shrinkage in evaporating area was great when the temperature was over 80°C, and that drying time for reducing the moisture content to 20 per cent was minimum when it was kept at about 70°C. These experimental results can be ascribed to the fact that starch in samples gelatinzes over 74°C.
From Fig. 10 and Table 2 presenting the effect of humidity, it may be concluded that the wet bulb depression occurring over 25°C has little to do with the shortening of the drying time.
Thus, it may safely be said that the optimum drying conditions for sweet potatoes are from 60°C to 80°C in temperature and from 25°C to 30°C in wet bulb depression.
Furthermore, several results were obtained on the effect of sample thickness, and at the same time the equilibrium moisture content was measured under different drying conditions.
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