Drying of vegetable starch solutions on inert particles: Quality and energy aspects

The paper deals with the energy efficiency of drying vegetable starch solutions on inert particles and the product quality. The experimental results performed in a continuous conical jet spouted bed with Teflon particles have shown that, for a given feed rate of vegetable starch solution, the product lightness varies with the initial moisture content and the position of an atomizing device. The starch damage index was below 2.5% and the lightness of the dried starch was in the range 94.1–96.1. A drying efficiency of 90 ± 3% is achieved with the proposed drying method.