Microwave and infrared drying kinetics and energy consumption of cherry tomatoes

In this study, the effect of different microwave and infrared power levels on drying kinetics of cherry tomatoes is investigated. Drying experiments are carried out with the power levels of 90, 180, 270 and 360 W (5.625, 11.250, 16.875 and 22.500 W/g as power density) in microwave studies and 74, 83 and 104 W (0.871, 0.976 and 1.224 W/g as power density) in infrared studies. The obtained experimental moisture ratios are fitted to seven different widely used thin-layer models and the results showed that Weibull and Aghbashlo et al. models best fit the data for microwave and infrared drying of cherry tomatoes. The effective moisture diffusivities for microwave and infrared drying studies are calculated between 5.46×10-8 and 4.24×10-7 m2/s and 7.33×10-9– –8.24×10-9 m2/s, respectively. Additionally, microwave and infrared activation energies are found to be 9.4654 and 0.3162 kW/kg, respectively.