Fluidized bed drying of some agro products – A review

Food products are dried to improve their shelf-life, reduce packaging costs, lower shipping weights, enhance appearance, to attempt to encapsulate original flavor and maintain nutritional value. In recent years, increasing importance is being given for using fluidized bed (FBD) dryers to process agricultural products. Higher throughput with better quality for a range of products (having different shape, bulk density, physical and chemical properties) can be achieved in FBD drying by using medium and low grade thermal energies. The present literature review summarizes the importance of FBD drying in combination with hybrid FBD drying techniques in moisture reduction of various agricultural products. The impact of various operating parameters on the product quality, color, texture and resultant nutritional value is discussed, with possible adaption of multi-effect systems.