Solar drying of peeled longan using solar tunnel dryer
- Publication Type
- Contribution to conference
- Authors
- Janjai S, Lamlert N, Boonrod Y, Bala BK, Mahayothee B, Haewsungcharern M, Müller J
- Year of publication
- 2008
- Published in
- The Uplands Program - Book of Abstracts
- Editor
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)
- Page (from - to)
- 149-150
- Conference name
- International Symposium: Interdependencies between Upland and Lowland Agriculture and Resource Management
- Conference location
- Stuttgart (Germany)
- Conference date
- 01.04.2008
Longan (Dimocarpus longan L.) is an important fruit of Thailand with an export value of $109 million in 2004 (Office of Agricultural Economics, Thailand, 2005) and it shows an increasing trend in production rate since 1990 (Varith et al, 2007). It is a seasonal fruit and its price is low during the season. Several preservation techniques are available to add value to this seasonal product such as canning and drying.
Drying is one of the oldest methods for preservation of fruits and vegetables and it also is an energy intensive operation. Improved drying technology is needed for improvement of the quality of dried products for value addition and reduction of post harvest losses and also for conservation of energy.
Thailand beeing located in the tropical regions of the Southeast Asia receives annual average daily solar radiation of 18,2 MJ/m²/day (Janjai et al, 2005). Thus, utilization of solar energy to produce quality solar dried peeled longan has been considered to be the most promising option. Furthermore, solar energy is a renewable and environment friendly. Therefore, the use of solar energy to dry longan is of great interest.