Development of a sustainable carob forest management model based on climatic, edaphic and ontogenic characteristics of the dry forest populations of Piura

 

Summary

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Design and development of a fruit and vegetable dehydrator prototype using innovative DIC (Controlled Instantaneous Decompression) technology; which consists of a thermo-mechanical treatment of the HTST (High Temperature for Short Time) type, combined with microwaves, to give added value to agro-industrial products from the Piura region such as: dehydrated mango pulp, raisins grape, dried cranberry, dried banana chips. The novelty lies in improving the dehydration processes that are currently used in the region, such as the manufacture of raisins, which is currently done by drying in the sun, with the product exposed to the elements with the risk of contamination; the dehydration of mango that is currently dried using hot air tunnels; processes that modify some organoleptic characteristics of the product and with an unpleasant appearance.

With innovation, it is expected to drastically reduce the time of the dehydration process, improve the organoleptic characteristics of the dehydrated products, reduce the risks of contamination and deterioration of the product; improving the quality of dehydrated products, ensuring safety and adding value to agroindustrial products from the Piura region (grapes, mango, banana).

Goals

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• Evaluate the technologies of fruit dehydration processes used in the region.
• Design and build a dehydrator prototype using controlled instantaneous decompression technology and the use of microwaves.
• Carry out the tests and characterization of the resulting dehydrated products.

Financier

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Fondecyt – BIM.

Coordinator

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Manuel Lopez.

Administrative coordinator

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Dalila Urizar.

Technical team

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Gastón Cruz Alcedo, Manuel López.