Iranian Specialists Make New Devices for Drying Temperature-Sensitive Materials in Food, Agriculture Industries
“We were able to make two spray dryers and a freeze dryer in the form of research and development. These devices help researchers to obtain basic data before scaling, scaling up (the business model turns into a repeatable model and the conformity of the product with the market needs is confirmed) and industrialization,” Mojtaba Vatan Ara, a board member and executive director of the knowledge-based company, told ANA.
“These devices are used in fields like biotechnology, medicine, food industry, herbal medicine, cosmetics and all fields where it is necessary to turn a liquid into a powder,” he added.
Noting that the spray dryer is used to dry liquids with aqueous solvents by using hot air flow, evaporation process and turning materials into dry powder, Vatan Ara said, “The spray dryer device is equipped with the technology of drying all types of solutions or suspensions.”
“This product is applied in drying temperature-sensitive materials in food and agriculture industries, including dairy, flavorings, preparation of fruit powder, plant extracts, beneficial and enriching food (human, livestock and poultry), algae, etc.,” he added.
“Freeze dryer is also used to dry liquids with aqueous solvents; on a laboratory scale, the process of dehydrating and removing moisture from materials by reducing temperature, pressure and sublimation process without applying any heat to the sample is one of the best solutions for drying materials. This product can be used to dry temperature-sensitive materials in food and agriculture industries to preserve the color, taste, smell, amount of vitamins and nutrients of vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, dairy products, herbs and food flavorings,” Vatan Ara said.
Freeze-drying is a way of dehydrating frozen food via a process that transforms ice into vapor, also known as sublimation.
It is a healthy food preservation method, as it retains most of the beneficial plant compounds and nutrients in foods, as well as their color, taste, and appearance.
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