The influence of process parameters on the quality of dried agricultural products determined using the cumulated thermal load

The cumulated thermal load (CTL) combines the effects of temperature and drying time on the quality of dried products and therefore highly improves the comparability of different drying processes. To make it more practicable, it was adjusted in this work. The adjusted CTLad was developed to better match the obtained results on an experimental level. Since the CTLad also stands in relation to the amount of energy consumed, a minimum of the CTLad is sought for drying processes. In practical experiments, the theoretical approach was partially verified for different quality parameters for mangoes and pineapples. It could be shown that the comparability of different drying experiments improved with the use of the CTLad. Optimal drying parameters concerning low changes in color, ascorbic acid, and polyphenols, as well as a low consumption in energy and time (CTLad), were found to be air temperatures T-air of 60 degrees C and relative humidities RH of 12% for pineapples and air temperatures T-air of 50 degrees C and relative humidities RH of 7% for mangoes.