Drying characteristics of pulsed electric field-treated carrot

This study was designed to establish the interaction effect of various components of pulsed electric field (PEF) system on drying characteristics of carrot, a vegetable rich in carotenoid. Carrots were treated in PEF system of 0.5, 1, and 1.5kV/cm electric field strength, 0.5 and 1 mu F capacitance, and pulse numbers of 10, 30, and 50. The samples were subsequently dried at 70 degrees C until reaching an acceptable moisture content level. Drying rates were significantly (P < 0.05) influenced by PEF treatment. Variation in drying constant was not significantly influenced by the interaction effect of electric field components but by the energy per pulse. The Henderson and Perry model was fitted to the drying curve and it gave correlation coefficients ranging between 0.86 and 0.96.