Effect of Harvesting Moisture Content and Drying Conditions on some of Qualitative Properties of Corn Kernel (SC647) Oil

Corn seed contains almost 5.5% of oil of which about 85% can be found in germs of seeds. Proper steps are necessary to take, from the point of view of harvesting time and percentage of moisture retaining in the seed during harvestinh time, to improve the quality of oil extracted from the seeds. In the present study, the effects of temperature at four levels (45, 55, 65 and 75 °C), seed moisture content at harvest time at three levels (30, 35 and 40% (d.b)), and hot air velocity at two levels (1 and 2 m/s) on the total oil content, oil color, free fatty acids and peroxide value were investigated. A factorial experiment in a completely randomized design was used to analyze the data and the mean comparison was conducted by Duncan's multiple-range test at α = 5%. Based on the results, the most appropriate drying temperature was found 55 °C, and the best moisture content at harvest time was found 30% d.b and the best hot air velocity was found 2 m/s. The peroxide value of samples (before drying and in all dried samples) was not significant because the treatments were not given enough time to begin the oxidation mechanism.