An overview of fish drying kinetics

Abstract

Purpose

Fishes are important sources of good and high-quality protein in developing countries. Spoilage and keeping quality of fish especially in the tropics is temperature dependence as high temperature and relative humidity accelerate the process of spoilage and fish keeping quality. Fish dehydration removed moisture and extended the shelf life of dried fish. Drying involves removal of moisture from fish as a result of heat and mass transfer done under controlled conditions. This study delves into various drying techniques and drying kinetics of fish.

Design/methodology/approach

The review examines fish drying kinetics and the various drying models applicable to fish drying.

Findings

This review showed that moisture content and colour of dried fish are affected by time and power level. It was also found that the moisture content of the dried fish varied according to the drying method used. Also, as drying power and drying rate varied inversely with drying time. Eight different thin layer drying models were examined for evaluation of drying data for all the experimental conditions involving fish drying. It was found that the quality of the dried fish decreased with drying. Higher values of effective moisture diffusivity have been found to increase moisture velocity within fish samples which improve removal of moisture to reach equilibrium moisture content at specified relative humidity. However, based on this, effective moisture diffusivity could be a useful parameter to design an effective drying method in terms of time, energy consumption and cost to prolong the storage life of dried fish samples. Drying kinetics and different drying models were considered and explained. The use of these models was considered to be important in choosing appropriate drying conditions for effective drying and to get good quality dried fish samples.

Research limitations/implications

The review considers few available literatures on the subject matter.

Practical implications

The review explores the possibility of creating more awareness for more in-depth research on fish drying kinetics and their usefulness in fish preservation.

Originality/value

This outcome of this study is important to researchers, policymakers and regulatory agencies in developing countries on fish preservation.

Citation

Adeyeye, S.A.O. (2019), "An overview of fish drying kinetics", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 49 No. 5, pp. 886-902. https://doi.org/10.1108/NFS-10-2018-0296