PREDICTING THE SORPTION BEHAVIOR OF GARLIC SLICES

Moisture desorption properties of fresh garlic (cv. Early Californian) were investigated at 20-degrees-C to 70-degrees-C and relative humidi ties ranging from 11% to 85% using the gravimetric static method. The slices were allowed to equilibrate in a constant humidity environment (hygrostats) maintained by salt solutions. The effect of temperature a nd relative humidity on the equilibrium moisture content was highly si gnificant (P<0.0001). Four models available in the literature, namely the Chung-Pfost, modified Halsey, modified Henderson and the Guggenhei m-Anderson-de Boer (GAB) were evaluated (the correlation coefficient, F-ratio and plots of residuals) to determine the best fit for the expe rimental data. On the basis of the F-test, The modified Henderson mode l was found adequate and the GAB model superior for characterising the sorption behaviour of garlic slices in the temperature and water acti vity range investigated.