OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION OF PUMPKIN (Cucurbita moschata) IN SUCROSE AND SUCROSE-SALT SOLUTIONS. EFFECT OF SOLUTION COMPOSITION AND SAMPLE SIZE

Mass transfer during osmotic dehydration (OD) of Anco pumpkin cubes was studied as a function of sample size and composition and concentration of sucrose dehydrating solution. Models of Azuara and Hawkes & Flink were adjusted to the experimental data and optimal dehydrating conditions could be specified. For equal solutes concentration, higher weight losses were reached for smaller size samples. The addition of 2% NaCl increased Water Loss (WL) and lowered Solids Gain (SG) for the solution of higher sucrose content. Prediction capacity of the simplified models was very good under the tested working conditions. In brief, OD can be optimized using 1 cm side cubes dehydrated in binary or ternary solutions at the higher sucrose content (55 degrees Bx), maximizing WL and minimizing SG.