Evaluation of Thin-Layer Drying Models for Simulation of Drying Kinetics of Quercus (Quercus persica and Quercus libani)

Drying characteristics of Quercus were determined experimentally as a function of temperature, air velocity, and variety (Quercus Persica and Quercus Libani). In order to estimate and select a suitable drying curve, five different thin layer drying models were fitted to the experimental data. Experiments were performed at the air temperatures of 50, 60 and 70°C. At each temperature level, two air velocities were adjusted: 0.5 and 1m/s. The effect of air temperature was found to be significant in comparison to air velocity for drying of fresh Quercus fruits. Increasing air velocity at constant air temperature resulted in the decrease of drying time. Among all the selected drying models, the Page model was found as the best mathematical model for describing the drying kinetics of Quercus fruits. Based on the results, drying temperature of 70 oC and air velocity of 1 m/s are the optimum values for drying Quercus fruit. Drying time and Page model constants were found to be dependent significantly on the variables studied.