Author(s):
Guiné, Raquel 
; Barroca, Maria João ; Lopes, Paulo ; Silva, Vitor ; Lima, Maria João ; Ferreira, Dulcineia
Date: 2010
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.19/1334
Origin: Repositório Científico do Instituto Politécnico de Viseu
Subject(s): Pear; Chemical properties
Description
Pears of S. Bartolomeu variety have been used over the years in Portugal to produce a traditional
dried pear using the cheapest practice with environmental friendly characteristics: open-sun drying.
However, the obvious disadvantages concerning the drying efficiency and safety of the dried product
have been an incentive to design or improve solar drying methods as an alternative to the traditional
one.
The present work has tested three types of drying processes, namely solar stove, solar drying and
tunnel drying. In addition, the efficiency of drying and the properties of the dried pears were compared
with the traditional dried fruits. The results of the tests have allowed us to conclude that all methods
have lead to a considerable reduction in drying time as compared to open-sun drying. Indeed, the
drying time for the solar stove and the solar dryer showed a reduction of 40% while in the drying tunnel
this reduction increased to 60%. In addition, it was also possible to conclude that the properties of the
dried pears obtained by the three processes correspond to a dried fruit similar to the traditional dried
pears.
Thus, based on these results, it can be inferred that the traditional sun drying at open-air can be
replaced by either of the processes tested in the present study, which, allow a higher drying efficiency
associated to a higher safety of the dried food, while maintains the properties of the traditional food
product.
