Experimental research on hot-air drying properties of capsicum

To provide a theoretical foundation for capsicum hot-air drying and parameter adjustment for the related equipment, drying properties of capsicum under various air temperatures, air velocities and loading thickness were studied. The drying property curves on different conditions obtained from experiments were analyzed. Effective fits were conducted from scatter plot and drying rate curves were obtained via Matlab software. Results show that air temperature is the most effective factor that affects the drying process of capsicum, and factors of air velocities and loading thickness follow air temperature in significance. For capsicum, there exists a constant drying rate stage in most of the initial drying period that is followed by a slow drying rate stage