Sorption Characteristics of Polished Rice in a Fluidized Bed

Abstract

Applicability of fluidization methods in rewetting low moisture polished rice was investigated using a recirculating fluidized bed. The sphericity of polished rice was calculated using Ergun's equation to determine the effective diameter. The calculated frictional pressure drop agreed well with the observed data. The sorption characteristics were investigated under fluidizing conditions at different air temperatures and relative humidities. Sorption data were fitted to the first falling rate period drying equation with a standard error of estimate of the moisture content of polished rice ranging from 0.06 to 0.14% d.b. and the sorption coefficient followed the Arrhenius type temperature dependency. The results showed that the fluidization techniques could be effectively used for rewetting low moisture polished rice.