Ultrasound as Pre-Treatment for Drying of Genipap (Genipa americana L.)

Genipap (Genipa americana L.) is an exotic tropical fruit that can be used in production of sweets, liqueurs, and several other foodstuffs. In this work the effect of ultrasonic pre-treatment prior to air-drying on dehydration of genipap was investigated. The study allowed estimating the water diffusivity in the air-drying process for genipaps submitted to ultrasound. Results showed that the water diffusivity increased after application of ultrasound and that the overall drying time was reduced by 28.2%. During the ultrasonic treatment, genipaps lost sugar showing that the ultrasonic pre-treatment can be a valuable process to produce dried fruits with lower sugar content.