Operation simulation of a convective and semi-industrial mango dryer Original Research Article

Modeling of an industrial convective dryer with 500 kg fresh mangoes per cycle was carried out in order to determine its functional aspects. First the mango drying characteristics were studied, using a laboratory dryer, in the range of 35 < T < 60 °C and 5% < RH < 70%. By taking shrinkage into account, the identified characteristic drying function was linear and the critical moisture value varied around the initial moisture content. Simulation with mango–air, heat and mass transfer in the industrial dryer allows its operation to be observed: the mangoes on all the wagon get the same final moisture content; using the parameters of the rainy season, the mango drying could be achieved with a longer cycle of one and an half day instead 24 h. Influence of mango chip size and air flow rate were also evaluated.