Energy usage and drying capacity of flat-bed and inclined-bed dryers for rough rice drying

The evaluation of a dryer performance in terms of energy consumption, drying capacity and quality of final product is the main concern of rice milling industry at any time. A study was implemented to investigate on the benefits of common drying practices by studying the drying performances of flat-bed and inclined-bed dryers which are popular in rice industry in Malaysia and neighbouring countries. For this purpose, flat-bed dryer (FBD) and inclined-bed dryer (IBD) were designed, fabricated and operated in the laboratory based on actual industrial drying conditions. The results revealed that inclined-bed drying significantly increased drying capacity (ton m-2 h-1) of up to 25 % at drying temperature of 42-43°C and almost 29 % at 38-39°C drying air temperature compared to flat-bed drying. Furthermore, overall drying energy consumption in IBD was found to vary between 78.6 to 91.97 kW.h ton-1, while for FBD the energy consumption was more than 200 kW.h ton-1 for both levels of drying air temperatures. Both dryers were found to produce rice with desired/ acceptable commercial quality index, even though the head rice yields of FBD were higher than that of IBDs

Optimization of enzymatic hydrolysis of tilapia (Oreochromis Spp.) scale gelatine

Gelatine hydrolysate is a type of gelatine that undergoes a controlled hydrolysis treatment to further break apart the gelatine or collagen molecules. In this study, gelatine hydrolysate was produced from commercial tilapia scale gelatine via controlled enzymatic hydrolysis. Commercial Alcalase 2.4 L, a protease enzyme was used to breakdown the peptide chains present in the gelatine. Optimization of hydrolysis conditions (temperature, time and enzyme to substrate ratio) was conducted by utilizing response surface methodology (RSM). Results showed that a hydrolysis temperature of 57.6 C together with a hydrolysis time of 80 min and enzyme to substrate ratio of 1.20 % (v/w) were the optimum conditions to obtain the highest degree of hydrolysis (10.91 %). The freeze-dried gelatine hydrolysate was characterized with respect to chemical composition:approximate composition, viscosity and molecular weight. The gelatine hydrolysate produced contained a high content of protein (85.26 %); thus, it may serve as a potential protein source for human needs

Mechanical and thermal properties of PLA/halloysite bio-nanocomposite films: effect of halloysite nanoclay concentration and addition of glycerol

The usage of biopolymers in developing biodegradable materials for applications that meet demands in society for sustainability and environmental safety has been limited due to the poor mechanical and thermal properties of biopolymers. This study aimed to improve the limited properties of biopolymers, particularly polylactic acid (PLA) films, by investigating the effect of incorporating different concentrations (0–5 wt.%) of halloysite nanoclay and by adding glycerol plasticiser on the mechanical properties (tensile strength, elongation at break, Young’s modulus, and toughness) and thermal properties (glass temperature (Tg), melting temperature (Tm), and crystalline temperature (Tc)) of the produced bio-nanocomposite films. It was found that the addition of halloysite nanoclay and glycerol improved the mechanical and thermal properties of the films. PLA films incorporated with 3 wt.% concentration of halloysite nanoclay resulted in optimum mechanical properties due to the uniform distribution or dispersion of halloysite nanoclay. The addition of halloysite nanoclay and glycerol reduced the Tg, Tm, and Tc of the films, suggesting that they can improve the processability of the biopolymer. The bio-nanocomposite films produced in this work have the potential to replace non-biodegradable films due to the improved properties of the films

Effect of halloysite nanoclay concentration and addition of glycerol on mechanical properties of bionanocomposite films

Conventional plastic made from petrochemical based polymer which is non-degradable is not environmentally friendly. Thus, there is a need to develop bionanocomposite films to replace the non-degradable plastic. Bionanocomposite films were produced by the casting method using polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymer with the incorporation of nanoclay, particularly halloysite. The effect of the halloysite nanoclay concentration (0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 wt.%) as well as the addition of a plasticiser, particularly glycerol, on the mechanical properties (tensile stress, elongation at break and tensile strength) of bionanocomposite films was investigated. It was found that without the addition of glycerol, 2 wt.% concentration of halloysite nanoclay film resulted in the maximum tensile strength and elongation at break due to the interaction of the PLA and the nanoclay which is known for interfacial adhesion. The interaction was confirmed by FTIR spectrum. When more than 2 wt.% of nanoclay clay was added, both the tensile strength and the elongation at break reduced due to the agglomeration of the nanoclay. However, when glycerol was added, the film without the addition of halloysite nanoclay exhibited the maximum tensile strength and the film with 8 wt.% halloysite nanoclay exhibited the maximum elongation at break. The addition of glycerol lowered the mechanical properties of the films because the intercalation of the glycerol into the clays prevented the entry of PLA into the interlamellar of the nanoclay

Mechanical properties of tapioca starch-based film incorporated with bulk chitosan and chitosan nanoparticle: a comparative study

Tapioca starch-based film exhibits poor mechanical properties, thus limiting the application of the film as food packaging material. The present study aims to improve the mechanical properties of tapioca starch-based film by varying the concentration of glycerol (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25% w/w). Then, the starch-based films were incorporated with bulk chitosan (CH) and chitosan nanoparticle (CNP) to produce the starch/CH film and starch/CNP film, respectively. The mechanical properties of all the films which are tensile strength (TS), elongation at break (EAB), and Young's modulus (YM) were characterised using texture analyser. The morphological properties of both CH and CNP were observed under scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results revealed that 25% w/w of glycerol was sufficient to overcome the brittleness of film and improve the flexibility of the film. The addition of CH and CNP led to the increment in TS and EAB values of the films, thus confirming the role of the reinforcing agent of both CH and CNP in the films. A comparison study between CH and CNP demonstrated that CNP was more effective to improve the mechanical properties of the starch films compared to CH

Characterization of antioxidant tapioca/polyaniline composites film prepared using solution casting method

Recently, the incorporation of polyaniline (PANI) as an additive into the biofilm to produce food packaging material is of particular interest due to the need to improve in the properties of the biocomposite film. The aim of this work is to evaluate the effect of concentration and size of PANI loading into the film on the antioxidant properties of PANI/starch film with the analysis of mechanical and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra. Composite films with 0.02 g, 0.05 g, and 0.1 g of PANI loading into the tapioca starch film were prepared with different sizes of PANI. The antioxidant and mechanical properties of tapioca starch/PANI composite film properties were investigated. The composites exhibited an increase in free radical scavenging capacity (a measure of antioxidant activity), with increasing of PANI loading in the film irrespective to the size of PANI. However, the highest free radical scavenging activity showed in sample B with the distribution size of PANI range 100 µm≤x≤125 µm. In the mechanical test, with the favorable to have more flexibility film rather than hard film, sample B with 0.05 g of PANI loading showed more flexible with high elongation at break (EAB) compared to others. Based on the FTIR spectra, the starch/PANI film spectra were similar to the starch/glycerol without PANI. However, one notable weak pick near 1455 cm-1 can be found in sample B and C with respective to the concentration of PANI loaded. The incorporation of PANI greatly affected the antioxidant activity of the film which affected the mechanical properties as well

Deposition of nanostructures derived from electrostatically stabilised TiO2 aqueous suspension onto a biocomposite

A nanostructure derived from TiO2 particle deposition onto a biocomposite surface derived from coir dust (CD) was developed to control degradation using a spray dry technique. To stabilise and reduce the size of dispersed particles, the TiO2 powder was prepared in deionised water at pH 10 and sonicated at 20kHz and 400W. The coir dust was obtained from coconut kernel waste and underwent drying treatment before it was mixed with polypropylene (PP) as the substrate. The suspension consisted of particles with an average size and zeta value of 285nm and -19.2mV, respectively. The suspension was spray dried onto a hot-pressed substrate (biocomposite) with a surface roughness between 0.23 and 1.57μm at ambient temperature. Scanning electron microscopy image analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis indicated that the TiO2 particles were successfully deposited onto the substrate, shown by the existence of a carboxylic acid group (COOH) in the CD matrix. Moreover, the weight of the deposited substrate increased exponentially with deposition time compared to pure PP substrate. However, the deposition rate of TiO2 nanoparticles was limited by the ratio of the substrate surface roughness to particle diameter, as predicted by a previous study

Tapioca starch films reinforced with microcrystalline cellulose for potential food packaging application

This work is directed towards developing biodegradable films from biopolymer that is sustainable and environmentally friendly particularly tapioca starch (TPS) films. However, the usage of TPS films for food packaging application has been limited due to the poor mechanical, barrier and thermal properties. Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) at different concentrations (0 to 10 wt.%) was incorporated as the filler into the films to form TPS/MCC composite films via solvent casting method in order to improve the limited properties of the films. The TPS/MCC films were characterized in terms of physical, mechanical, barrier, and thermal properties. It was found that 3 wt.% MCC was the ideal concentration of filler that resulted to the highest performance of the films in terms of mechanical and barrier properties. Thermal properties of the films were also improved with the addition of MCC into the films. In conclusion, TPS/MCC films produced in this study exhibit improved properties and have the potential to be used for food packaging application

Parboiled rice processing method, rice quality, health benefits, environment, and future perspectives: a review

Parboiled rice is recognized for its greater milling yield and reduced rice breakage compared to raw rice during processing. Additionally, parboiled rice has better glycemic control and numerous health benefits. However, the production of parboiled rice requires energy-intensive processing as well as wastewater production. This study reviews parboiled rice, including its processing condition, nutritional properties, potential use, emerging green technologies, and health benefits. It also discussed the outlook and challenges regarding parboiled rice. In addition, a novel overview of emerging green solutions applied to the process to minimize wastewater creation during parboiling and reduce excessive energy usage is provided. The limitation of parboiled rice for a new market preference is the color. An intense process would cause an unwanted physical appearance. A thorough study should balance the multiple advantages of parboiled rice with the reasonable intensity of the process. Due to its multiple advantages, parboiled rice is demonstrated to be a possible breakthrough in the agriculture and food industries. This review aims to provide a thorough understanding that can be used for academic and industrial purposes

Water sorption and water permeability properties of edible film made from potato peel waste

The water sorption and permeability properties of edible film produced from potato peel waste was investigated under different levels of relative humidity (23, 33, 43, 57, 75% RH) and temperatures (5, 30, 50 °C). The water sorption behaviour and isotherms of the film were investigated by fitting water sorption data to the Peleg model and the Guggenheim, Anderson de Boer model (GAB model). The amount of moisture content, time required for the moisture content of the film to reach equilibrium, water sorption rate, and water sorption capacity increased when the relative humidity increased. The effect of temperature on moisture content, water sorption rate, water sorption capacity, and monolayer moisture content is complex and related to the water activity as well as the moisture content. Based on R2 and RMSE values, the Peleg and GAB models were respectively determined as excellent models to predict the water sorption properties of the films, thus supporting the reliability of water sorption behaviour prediction. The water vapour transmission rate and water vapour permeability increased with an increase in relative humidity and temperature. The sorption and permeability properties of the film are worth investigation since the final application of the film as food packaging is ultimately dependent on these behaviours