Drying characteristics of chitin under infrared ray and its kinetics model

In order to look for a low-energy–consumption and high-efficiency drying method, the drying characteristics of chitin under infrared ray were studied. The results show that temperature has more obvious influence than granularity on the drying rate of chitin. With the increase of temperature, the drying rate increases. The chitin granularity does not have a significant influence on drying rate. Comparisons of different drying models at different temperatures were made through linear regression analysis program. The results show that the drying procedure of chitin under infrared ray can accurately be described by the Page model, and the drying rates and moisture contents at different drying stages can also be easily estimated by it.