Evaluation of the Kinetics of Drying Sweet Chili (Capsicum annuum) in a Tray Dryer

Abstract

This study establishes the kinetics regarding the drying process of sweet chili (Capsicum annuum), in order to obtain flour through a tray dryer. The sweet chili samples of 9±0.2° Brix, humidity 91.18% and green coloration were adapted to 2.3×2.3 cm dimensions, dried at 50, 60 and 70°C temperatures on a tray dryer with forced air at 2.7m/s, continual weight. The drying curves were adjusted to 12 mathematical models, determined through adjusted R2 and the Sum of Squared Errors (SSE) that the Midilli and Kucuk model best describe the drying process at a 50°C temperature (R2 of 0.9976 and SSE of 0.012), at 60°C (R2 of 0.9972 SSE of 0.011) and 70°C (R2 of 0.9960 SSE of 0.012).