Influence of air velocity and temperature on ultrasonically assisted low temperature drying of eggplant

- Power ultrasound (US) application shortened the drying time by as much as 87%.
- US decreased the influence of air velocity and temperature on the drying kinetics.
- The rehydration capacity was only influenced by the drying temperature.
- Hardness was not influenced by the processing variables.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the feasibility of power ultrasound (US) application during the low temperature drying (LTD) of eggplant, analyzing the influence of the process variables linked to the air flow (velocity and temperature) on the drying kinetics and different quality aspects of the dehydrated product. For that purpose, eggplant (Solanum melongena var. Black Enorma) cubes (8.6 mm side) were dried at different air velocities (1, 2, 4 and 6 m/s) and temperatures (10, 0 and −10 °C) without (AIR) and with (AIR + US) US application. The rise in the air velocity and temperature led to an increase in the drying rate in AIR experiments. US application accelerated the drying process under every experimental condition tested, shortening the drying time by up to 87%. As for the quality parameters, no remarkable influence of the process variables (US application, air velocity and temperature) on the rehydration, reconstitution in olive oil or hardness of the rehydrated product was observed.