Optimization of the osmotic drying process to abtain dry products of Tommy Atkins mango.
Almeida F. de A. C., Ribeiro C. de F. A., Tobinaga S., Gomes J. P.
Author Affiliation: DEAg/CCT/UFCG, Av. Aprígio Veloso, 882, CEP 58100-970, Campina Grande, PB, Brazil.
Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental 9 : 576-584
Abstract : Tropical fruits like mango (Mangifera indica), one of the most popular fruits of the world, although very much appreciated, is highly perishable and require special techniques for its conservation and commercialization. This work aimed to optimize the process of osmotic drying of mango and to study the effect of temperature, sucrose concentration and time of immersion on the loss of water and gain in solid content. The influence of each variable and its interactions on the response were analysed through analysis of variance (F-test and determination coefficient). It was verified that the three factors show significant effect on the loss of water and gain of mango solids, within the limits of the study. The optimum conditions found for dehydration used as pretreatment for larger loss of water and smaller gain of solids were: temperature of 50°C, concentration of 40% and immersion time of 90 minutes.