Abstract:
The microwave drying of
wheat and corn seeds by two technologies
at different working powers is studied
here. The main objective is to evaluate the
effect of microwaves on variations in the
moisture, colour and size of the seeds after
microwave drying. The tests are performed
in microwave ovens with and without
inverter technology at three drying powers
(260, 440 and 620 W). It has been
observed that increasing drying power
results in a ~50% reduction in drying time
and a seed moisture level below 14%. The
colour variation of the seeds is
insignificant between microwave drying
with and without the inverter. However,
there is also an unacceptable decrease in
size for both types of seeds with increasing
drying power, which can lead to increased
shrinkage of the seeds and the appearance
of cracks, especially in the corn seeds.
