What Process Optimizes Convective Drying of Farm Products with Complex Constitution: Case of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus)

Farm products’ drying is a subject of a great importance. It is an adequate means to ensure the overproduction conservation and for economic development. It is known that air parameters such as temperature, velocity, the exposure time of the product have an important role on the dried product quality.

In this paper, the authors proposed an optimized process for farm product convective drying. Above and beyond the influence of the air parameters on foodstuff convective drying, this work showed that product internal parameters and drying proceedings must be taken into account during the evaluation of their convective drying.

In this study, the okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) was considered as foodstuff product having complex constitution and structure. Okras used in the present work are obtained in a local market of Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. Some of them were carried in France, wrapped with blotting paper and store in a refrigerator. A convective dryer was used in University Claude Bernard. Other okras were carried out in Polytechnic University of Bobo in GERME-TI.

Results indicated that okra maturity influenced its convective drying. It dried faster when it was too young or when it was advanced age. Drying time of okra of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 days old was respectively 580 min, 780 min, 990 min, 1200 min and 850 min. Also, one observed that considering okra on its three zones according its length, i.e. its base, middle and extremity parts had not the same resistance to transfers during convective drying. These three zones had respectively 400 min, 520 min and 600 min of drying time. Okra cut revealed a major importance on its convective drying evaluation. The longitudinal cut di-viding okra on four parts, sliced with 5 mm and 10 mm of thickness and the whole okra put respectively 150 min, 200 min, 280 min and 400 min for their drying.

In conclusion, three (03) different constituents of okra, namely, the skin, the seeds and central material behaved differently during convective drying. The drying time of the central material, the seeds and the skin was about 70 min, 150 min and 190 min respectively, against 400 min for the whole okra.

Article by Ouoba Kondia Honoré, et al, from Burkina Faso and France.

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Image by Susan Frazier, from Flickr-cc.