Experimental investigation and theoretical modelling of absolute convective drying of starch

Starch is a granular, hygroscopic, capillary-porous material with an intricate structure. It is known that drying starch till 0% moisture is a physical treatment that modifies starch properties. However, depending upon the heat and mass transfer mechanisms prevalent in the drying system, starch properties are modified in a unique manner. Therefore, the drying operation itself needs to be thoroughly understood. Potato starch was treated in an oven at three high-temperature levels (110, 130 and 140 °C) and for three sample thicknesses (2.8, 5.6 and 11.2 mm). It was observed that drying of starch with moisture content in the hygroscopic range occurred only in the 2nd falling rate period. Two existing theoretical, drying models, one based upon the Krischer Theory and the other based upon the Percolation Approach, were considered apt for modelling the oven drying. Both models describe the experimentally measured moisture profiles well. During drying, transition from one water sub-population to another was smooth. The effective diffusion coefficient decreased with moisture content and increased with temperature, but did not follow Arrhenius’ Law above 130 °C.