SIMULATION OF PLUM DRYING IN DEEP BED

Abstract
Thin layer air drying of plum was studied. The drying conditions in this study are : dry bulb temperature ranging from 60 to 100 °C, air moisture content ranging from 0.008 to 0.089 kg water/kg dry air and air velocity ranging from 0.5 to 2 1x11s. An exponential model was used to describe the drying curve. The heat and moisture balances on the air were used to calculate the outlet air temperature and its moisture content. The heat balance on the product was used to calculate the product temperature. These equations were used to predict the drying of plum in deep bed. A good agreement between the experimental and calculated product moisture content, the product temperature and the outlet air temperature were obtained