Drying kinetics of Hyola 430 hybrid canola (Brassica napus L.) seeds
This work aimed to study the drying kinetics of canola seeds, fit mathematical models and obtain the effective diffusion coefficient. Canola seeds with initial moisture content of 0.3653 (decimal, d.b.) were subjected to drying in a forced ventilation oven at temperatures of 40, 60, 80 and 100 °C and relative humidity of 37.15, 16.93, 8.35, 4.41 and 2.47%, respectively. The samples were dried on trays without perforations, containing approximately 77 g, in three replicates. A final moisture content of 0.080 ± 0.004 (decimal, d.b.) was established to determine the drying curves and fit the mathematical models. The mathematical models were selected considering the mean estimated error, chi-square, coefficient of determination, mean relative error, and Akaike (AIC) and Bayesian (BIC) information criteria. Drying time decreased with increasing temperature. Based on the best values of the statistical parameters and together with the Akaike and Bayesian information criteria, the Page model was selected to represent the drying kinetics of canola seeds. The effective diffusion coefficients showed magnitudes between 0.153x10-11 and 1.221x10-11 (m2 s-1), and their values increased with temperature increase, being described by the Arrhenius equation, with activation energy of 33.94 kJ mol-1, an important piece of information to consider when designing drying equipment