Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

www.elsevier.com/locate/enconman

Adsorptiondesorption isotherms and heat of sorption of prickly pear fruit (Opuntia cus indica)
S. Lahsasni a, M. Kouhila
a b

b,*

, M. Mahrouz

Unit de Chimie Agroalimentaire (LCOA), Facult des Sciences Semlalia, B.P. 2390, e e Marrakech 40001, Morocco Laboratoire dEnergie Solaire et Plantes Aromatiques et Mdicinales, Ecole Normale Suprieure, e e B.P. 2400, Marrakech 40001, Morocco Received 16 December 2002; accepted 24 May 2003

Abstract The equilibrium moisture contents were determined for prickly pear fruit using the gravimetric static method at t 30, 40 and 50 C over a range of relative humidities from 0.05 to 0.9. The sorption curves of prickly pear fruit decreased with increase in temperature at constant relative humidity. The hysteresis eect was observed. The GAB, modied Halsey, modied Chung-Pfost, modied Oswin and modied Henderson models were tested to t the experimental data. The GAB model was found to be the most suitable for describing the sorption curves. The monolayer moisture content values for the sorption at dierent temperatures are calculated using a modied BET equation. The isosteric heats of desorption and adsorption of water were determined from the equilibrium data at dierent temperatures. 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Equilibrium moisture content; Isosteric heat; Modelling; Prickly pear fruit; Sorption isotherms

Corresponding author. Tel.: +212-4434-0789; fax: +212-4434-2287. E-mail address: kouhila@hotmail.com (M. Kouhila).

0196-8904/$ - see front matter 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/S0196-8904(03)00133-X

250

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

Notations A, B and C model coecients aw water activity B0 , C0 , h1 and h2 GAB coecients d.b dry basis degree of freedom df EMC equilibrium moisture content M equilibrium moisture content (% d.b) Mi;exp ith experiment moisture content (% d.b) Mi;pre ith predicted moisture content (% d.b) monolayer moisture content (% d.b) Mm MRE mean relative error (%) N number of data points net isosteric heat of sorption (kJ/mol) Qst R universal gas constant (8.314 kJ/kmol K) RH equilibrium relative humidity SEM standard error of moisture t temperature (C) T absolute temperature (K)

1. Introduction The prickly pear cactus (Opuntia cus indica; Opuntia spp., Cactaceae) is native to the United States, Mexico and South America, but it grows well in other areas, including Africa, Australia and the Mediterranean region. The major components of the prickly pear fruit pulp are 85% water, 1015% carbohydrates and substantial amounts of vitamin C, 2530 mg per 100 g portion [1]. Its nutritional value lies essentially in its glucose and fructose content (68%) [2]. In the food sector, besides consumption of the fresh fruit, jams, alcoholic soft drinks, syrups, candied fruit and our can be produced from the plant and oil extracted from the seeds. The vegetable stems (cladode) and fruits of prickly pear are useful to treat diabetes, high blood cholesterol levels, inammation and obesity [3,4]. The moisture sorption isotherm is an extremely valuable tool for food scientists and technologists because it can be used to predict potential changes in food stability. It can be used for storing method determination, packaging selection and ingredient selection. The relationship between water activity (aw ) and the equilibrium moisture content (EMC) in a product is often expressed as a sorption isotherm. The typical shape of an isotherm reects the manner in which the water is bound to the system [5]. Numerous models for predicting the relationship between equilibrium moisture, water activity and temperature have been developed. Iglesias and Chirife [6] reviewed several equations for modelling EMC and reported that some models were adequate to characterize the sorption behaviour of particular foods for the given range of temperature and aw or equilibrium relative humidity (Rh).

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

251

Chen and Morey [7] evaluated four models: modied Chung-Pfost [8], modied Halsey [6], modied Henderson [9] and modied Oswin [10] for their ability to t data from 18 grains and seed crops. The BET equation, developed by Brunauer, Emmett and Teller [11], is the most popular due to its thermodynamic base [12,13]. The BET monolayer concept was found to be a reasonable guide with respect to various aspects of interest in dried foods, but this equation was known to hold only for a limited range of water activity 0.10.5. The Guggenhein, Anderson and Boer (GAB) isotherm equation has been widely used to describe the sorption behaviour of foods [14]. The GAB equation has been found to represent adequately the experimental data in the range of water activity (0.10.9) of most practical interest in food [15]. The net isosteric heat of sorption can be used to estimate the energy requirements for the dehydration process. The level of material moisture content at which the net isosteric heat of sorption approaches the latent heat of vaporisation of water is often taken as an indication of the amount of bound water existing in the food [16,17]. The heat of vaporisation of sorbed water may increase to values well above the vaporisation of pure water as food is dehydrated to low moisture levels [18]. This study aims to: determine the eect of temperature on the moisture adsorption and desorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit in the temperature range 3050 C; analyse six sorption isotherm equations available in the literature; nd the most suitable model corresponding to the isotherms of prickly pear fruit; calculate the net isosteric heat of water sorption from the experimental data.

2. Materials and method 2.1. Materials and experimental procedure The prickly pear fruit used in the sorption isotherms experiments was grown in the region of Bengrir (near the town of Marrakech). Fresh prickly pear fruits were used in the desorption experiments. Samples used in the adsorption isotherms were dried in an oven regulated at a temperature of 50 C until reaching maximum dehydration. The EMC of the prickly pear fruit was determined at 30, 40 and 50 C. The static gravimetric method was applied. This method is based on the use of saturated salt solutions to maintain a xed relative humidity. The salts used were KOH, MgCl2 , K2 CO3 , NaNO3 , KCl and BaCl2 . These salts have a range of relative humidity of 590%. The values of their equilibrium relative humidities at dierent temperatures are given in Table 1 [19]. The experimental apparatus consists of six glass jars of 1 l each with an insulated lid. Each glass jar contains a dierent salt solution so as to have a relative humidity that varies from 5% to 90%, and they are immersed in a thermostated water bath adjusted to a xed temperature for 24 h so as to bring the salt solutions to a stationary temperature. Duplicate samples each of 1 g (0.001 g) for desorption and 0.1 g (0.001) for adsorption were weighed into glass jars. The six samples are weighed every 2 days. EMC was acknowledged when

252

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

Table 1 Selected saturated salt solutions and corresponding relative humidities (%) [19] KOH 30 C 40 C 50 C 7.38 6.26 5.72 MgCl2 32.38 31.59 30.54 K2 CO3 43.17 42.30 40.91 NaNO3 72.75 71.00 69.04 KCl 83.62 82.32 81.20 BaCl2 89.80 89.10 88.23

three consecutive weight measurements showed a dierence of less than 0.001 g. The moisture content of each sample was determined by a drying oven whose temperature is xed at 105 C. The temperature of the thermostated bath is changed, and the same experiment is repeated for both adsorption and desorption processes at t 30, 40 and 50 C. 2.2. Analysis of data The description of the relationship between EMC, Rh and temperature was veried according to the following models: Modied Chung-Pfost [8]:   A Rh exp exp CM tB Modied Halsey [6]:   expA Bt Rh exp MC Modied Oswin [10]:  C Rh M A Bt 1 Rh Modied Henderson [9]: 1 Rh expAt BM C GAB [14,15]: M ABCRh 1 BRh1 BRh BCRh 5

where M is the equilibrium moisture content in % d.b, Rh is the equilibrium relative humidity as a decimal, A, B and C are model coecients and t is the temperature in C. The parameters B and C in the GAB equation can be correlated with temperature using the following Arrehenius type equations [20]:   h1 6 B B0 exp RT   h2 C C0 exp 7 RT

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

253

where B0 , C0 , h1 and h2 are coecients, T is the absolute temperature and R is the universal gas constant. Modied BET [11,21] A BtCRh 8 M 1 Rh1 Rh CRh Mm A Bt 9 Mm : monolayer moisture content. The correlation coecient (r) was one of the primary criteria for selecting the best equation to t the ve models to the experimental data. In addition to r, the statistical parameters, mean relative error MRE as a % and standard error of estimate SEM, were used to determine the quality of the t.  N  100 X  Mi;exp Mi;pre    10 MRE   N M
i1 i;exp

s PN 2 i1 Mi;exp Mi;pre SEM df

11

where Mi;exp is the ith experimental moisture content, Mi;pre is the ith predicted moisture content, N is the number of observations and df is the degree of freedom of the regression model. 2.3. Determination of the isosteric heat of sorption The net isosteric heat of sorption can be determined from moisture sorption data using the following equation, which is derived from the ClausiusClapeyron equation [22]: o lnRh Qst 12 RT 2 oT Integrating Eq. (12), assuming that the net isosteric heat of sorption (Qst ) is temperature independent, gives the following equation:   Qst 1 K 13 lnRh R T The MarquardtLevenberg nonlinear optimisation method, using the computer programs Curve Expert 3.1 and Origin 6.1, was used to nd the best equation for the prickly pear fruit sorption isotherms and the net isosteric heat of sorption. 3. Results and discussion 3.1. Experimental results The hygroscopic equilibrium of prickly pear fruit is reached in 10 days for desorption and 8 days for adsorption. Fig. 1 gives the experimental data obtained for adsorption and desorption of prickly pear fruit at t 30 C. The sorption isotherms have an S-shape prole, typical for many food materials [2331].

254

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

100 Equilibrium moisture content M % d.b adsorption isotherm desorption isotherm

80

60

40

20

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh

Fig. 1. Desorption and adsorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit at t 30 C.

Fig. 1 shows that the desorption and adsorption curves of prickly pear fruit have similar rates. The hysteresis eect was observed. At constant relative humidity, the EMC of desorption is higher than the adsorption one. Several hypotheses have been put forward to explain hysteresis. Al Hodali [32] explains this hysteresis by considering a rigid structure pore connected to its surrounding by a small capillary. During adsorption, the capillary begins to ll as a result of the rising in relative humidity, while the pore is still empty. When the partial pressure of the vapour in air becomes greater than the vapour pressure of the liquid in the capillary, the moisture will move into the pore. For desorption, the pore is initially full of liquid at saturation. This liquid can escape only when the pressure of the surrounding air becomes lower than the vapour pressure of liquid inside the capillary. As the system of pores has generally a large range of capillary diameters, it results that dierences between adsorption and desorption are observed. The adsorption and desorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit obtained for three temperatures (30, 40 and 50 C) are shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The EMC increases with decreasing temperature at constant relative humidity. Similar results for many plants and foods materials have been reported in the literature [2331].
Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) 100 80 60 40 20 0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh Experimental data at t=50C Experimental data at t=40C Experimental data at t=30C

Fig. 2. Inuence of temperature on the desorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit.

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

100 Equilibrium moisture content M (%d.b) 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh Experimental data at t = 50C Experimental data at t = 40C Experimental data at t = 30C

255

Fig. 3. Inuence of temperature on the adsorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit.

3.2. Fitting of sorption models to experimental sorption data The results of nonlinear regression analysis of tting the sorption equations to the experimental data are shown in Table 2 for desorption, and in Table 3 for adsorption. The parameters for the GAB model are presented in Table 4. The moisture content models were compared according to their correlation coecient (r), mean relative error (MRE) and standard error of estimate (SEM).
Table 2 Parameters estimation, r, MRE and SEM of the four equations tted to the desorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit A Modied Modied Modied Modied Henderson Chung-Pfost Oswin Halsey 0.0005 188.6934 55.9235 12.3481 B )28.8195 9.2432 )0.5301 )0.1527 C 1.7241 0.0453 0.4227 1.8807 r 0.9922 0.9861 0.9944 0.9932 MRE% 13.67 11.82 9.62 6.91 SEM 3.7672 5.0116 3.1456 3.4732

Table 3 Parameters estimation, r, MRE and SEM of the four equations tted to the adsorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit A Modied Modied Modied Modied Henderson Chung-Pfost Oswin Halsey 0.0005 472.1636 29.5784 5.8588 B 0.1991 108.6252 )0.1426 )0.0338 C 1.1195 0.0485 0.5051 1.4528 r 0.9839 0.9631 0.9934 0.9967 MRE% 15.31 27.13 10.79 9.76 SEM 5.2440 7.7591 3.2897 2.7683

Table 4 Parameters estimation, r, MRE and SEM of the GAB equation tted to the sorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit A Desorption Adsorption 19.1677 12.9642 B0 3.1818 1.4753 C0 0.0004 0.0002 h1 )3403 )1163 h2 28696 32752 r 0.9967 0.9976 MRE% 5.89 5.89 SEM 2.7795 2.2733

256
100 Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b)

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

100 Experimental data Modified Oswin model Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) Experimental data Modified Halsey model 80

80

60

t=40C

60

t=40C

40

40

20

20

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh 100

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh 100 Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) Experimental data Modified Chung-Pfost model Experimental data Modified Henderson model

Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b)

80

80

60
t=30C

60
t=50C

40

40

20

20

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilbrium relative humidity Rh 100 Equilibrium moisture content M (% db) 80 60
t=40C

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh

Experimental data GAB model

40 20 0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh

Fig. 4. Desorption isotherms of ve models of prickly pear fruit.

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

100 Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) Experimental data Modified Oswin model 80 100 Experimental data Modified Halsey model 80

257

60
t=30C

60
t=50C

40

40

20

20

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh 100 Experimental data Modified Chung-Pfost model

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh 100 Experimental data Modified Henderson model

Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b)

80

Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b)

80

60
t=30C

60
t=30C

40

40

20

20

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equilibrium relative humidity Rh 100 90 Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0.0 0.2

0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Equlibrium relative humidity Rh

Experimental data GAB model

t=30C

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

Equilibrium relative humidity Rh

Fig. 5. Adsorption isotherms of ve models of prickly pear fruit.

258

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

Table 5 Parameters estimation, r, MRE and SEM of the modied BET equation tted to the sorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit A Desorption Adsorption 10.6385 8.0978 B )0.0063 0.0141 C )136.6911 )94.4504 r 0.9466 0.9864 MRE% 14.60 11.13 SEM 9.7594 4.4081

However, the GAB model had the highest r value and the lowest MRE and SEM values for desorption and adsorption compared to the other models. Figs. 4 and 5 show that there is a slight dierence between the experimental data and the dierent models. To compare the performances of the ve models, the GAB model gave the best results for the isotherms for both desorption and adsorption of prickly pear fruit. Consequently, the GAB model was selected to describe better the sorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit. The modied Halsey is the second best model. The values of the monolayer moisture content obtained using modied BET model are shown in Table 5. The Mm values decreased with the increase in temperature for desorption. For adsorption, the Mm values decrease with decrease in temperature. There is also a hysteresis eect with respect to the monolayer moisture content. This decrease in monolayer moisture contents for desorption can be explained by considering the structural changes in the plant at increased temperatures. It was suggested that at increased temperature, some water molecules are activated to energy levels that allow them to break away from their sorption sites, thus decreasing the equilibrium moisture content [27]. 3.3. Heat of sorption The isosteric heat of sorption, Qst , values were calculated from the slope of the plot between the values of lnRh and 1=T at constant moisture content as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. The relative humidities at dierent temperatures and at constant moisture content were obtained from Figs. 2 and 3. The variations of the heats of adsorption and desorption of the prickly pear fruit with moisture content are shown in Figs. 8 and 9, respectively. The isosteric heats of adsorption and
1.4 1.2 1.0 ln(Rh) 0.8 0.6 0.4 M=25% M=30% M=35% M=40% M=45%

0.00310

0.00315

0.00320 1/T

0.00325

0.00330

0.00335

Fig. 6. lnRh vs 1=T graphs for calculating the heat of desorption of prickly pear fruit.

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

1.0

259

0.8

M=25% M=30% M=35% M=40% M=45%

ln(Rh)

0.6

0.4

0.2 0.00310 0.00315 0.00320 1/T 0.00325 0.00330 0.00335

Fig. 7. lnRh vs 1=T graphs for calculating the heat of adsorption of prickly pear fruit.

14 Heat of desorption Q st (kJ/mol)

Experimental data Curve fit

12

10

6 30 35 40 45

Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b)

Fig. 8. Net isosteric heat of desorption for dierent moisture contents.

desorption of prickly pear fruit decrease with increase in material moisture content. The heat of desorption is greater than that of adsorption. This indicates that the energy required in the desorption process is greater than that in the adsorption process as stated by Hossain et al. [30] and Ertekin and Sultanoglu [31]. At low moisture contents, the heat of sorption is higher than at high moisture contents. Tsami [33] suggested that the rapid increase in the heat of sorption at low moisture content was due to the existence of highly active polar sites on the surfaces of the food material, which are covered with water molecules forming a mono-molecular layer. The net isosteric heat of desorption and adsorption of water in prickly pear fruit can be expressed mathematically as a polynomial function of moisture content: 14 Qst desorption 207:5376 13:8130M 0:3220M 2 0:0025M 3 r 1 2 Qst adsorption 6:5183 0:0267M 0:0032M r 1 15

260

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

6 5 4 3 2 1 0 30 35 40 45 Equilibrium moisture content M (% d.b) Experimental data Curve fit

Fig. 9. Net isosteric heat of adsorption for dierent moisture contents.

4. Conclusions The moisture adsorption and desorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit at three temperatures (30, 40 and 50 C) and dierent relative humidities were determined using the gravimetric static method. The EMC increases with decrease in temperature at constant relative humidity. It has been further demonstrated that the temperature dependence of sorption isotherms could be predicted with reasonable accuracy. The hysteresis phenomenon was observed. Among the sorption models chosen to t sorption curves, the GAB equation describes better the sorption isotherms of prickly pear fruit. The monolayer moisture content values for adsorption and desorption at dierent temperatures were determined using a modied BET equation. The heat of sorption of prickly pear fruit decreases with an increase in moisture content and is found to be a polynomial function of moisture content. Acknowledgements This study was nanced by the CNRST (Morocco) for a project PROTARS III (Ref. D12/34) on Solar Drying and Quality of Medicinal and Aromatic plants. References
[1] Gurrieri S, Miceli L, Lanza ML, Tomaselli F, Bonomo PR, Rizzarelli E. Chemical characterization of Sicilian prickly pear (Opuntia cus indica) and perspectives for the storage of its juice. J Agric Food Chem 2000;48:542431. [2] Habibi Y, Mahrouz M, Vignon MR. Isolation and structure of D -xylans from pericarp seeds of Opuntia cus indica prickly pear fruits. Carbohyd Res 2002;337:15938. [3] Galati EM, Monforte MT, Tripodo MM, dAquino A, Mondello MR. Antiulcer activity of Opuntia cus indica (L.) Mill. (Cactaceae). ultrastructural study. J Ethnopharmacol 2001;76(1):19. [4] Park EH, Kahng JH, Lee SH, Shin KH. An anti-inammatory principle from cactus. Fitoterapia 2001;72(3):28890.

Heat of adsorption Q st (kJ/mol)

S. Lahsasni et al. / Energy Conversion and Management 45 (2004) 249261

261

[5] Wolf W, Spiess WEL, Jung G. Properties of water in foods. Netherlands: Simatos and Multon; 1985. [6] Iglesias H, Chirife J. Prediction of eect of temperature on water sorption isotherms of food materials. J Food Technol 1976;11:10713. [7] Chen CC, Morey RV. Comparison of four EMC/ERH equations. Trans ASAE 1989;32:9839. [8] Pfost HB, Mourer SG, Chung DS, Miliken GA. Summarizing and reporting equilibrium moisture data for grains. ASAE Paper No. 76-3520. St Josef, MI, 1976. [9] Thompson TL, Peart RM, Foster GH. Mathematical simulation of corn drying, a new model. Trans ASAE 1986;11:5826. [10] Oswin CR. The kinetics of package life. III. Isotherm. J Soc Chem Indus 1946;65:41921. [11] Brunauer S, Emmett PH, Teller E. Adsorption of gases in multi-molecular layers. J Am Chem Soc 1938;60:30919. [12] Iglesias H, Chirife J. BET monolayer values in dehydrated foods. Comparison with BET theory. Lebensm Wiss Technol 1976;9:1236. [13] Labuza TP. Sorption phenomena in foods. Food Technol 1968;23:159. [14] Van den Berg C. Description of water activity of food engineering purposes by means of the GAB model of sorption. In: McKenna BM, editor. Engineering foods. New York: Elsevier; 1984. p. 119. [15] Timmermann EO, Chirife J, Iglesias HA. Water sorption isotherms of foods and foodtus: BET or GAB parameters. J Food Eng 2001;48:1931. [16] Duckworth RB. The properties of water around the surfaces of food colloids. Proc Inst Food Sci Technol 1972;5:5062. [17] Kiranoudis CT, Maroulis ZB, Tsami E, Marinos-Kouris D. Equilibrium moisture content and heat of desorption of some vegetables. J Food Eng 1993;20:5574. [18] Rizvi SSH. Thermodynamics of foods in dehydration. In: Rao MA, Rivizi SSH, editors. Engineering properties of food. New york: Marcel Dekker; 1986. p. 122214. [19] Bizot H, Multon JL. Mthode de rfrence pour la mesure de lactivit de leau dans les produits alimentaires. Ann e ee e Technol Agric 1978;27(2):441. [20] Labuza TP, Kaanane A, Chen JY. Eect of temperature on the moisture sorption isotherms and water activity shift of two dehydrates foods. J Food Sci 1985;50:38591. [21] Menkov ND, Paskalev HM, Galyazkov DI, Kerezieva-Rakova M. Applying the linear equation of correlation of BrunauerEmmetTeller (BET) monolayer moisture content with temperature. Nahrung 1999;43:1128. [22] Iglesias HA, Chirife J. Isosteric heats of water vapour sorption on dehydrated foods. Part II: hysteresis and heat of sorption comparison with BET theory. Lebensm Wiss Technol 1976;9:1237. [23] Menkov ND. Moisture sorption isotherms of lentil seeds at several temperatures. J Food Eng 2000;44:20511. [24] Lahsasni S, Kouhila M, Mahrouz M, Kechaou N. Experimental study and modelling of adsorption and desorption isotherms of prickly pear peel (Opuntia cus indica). J Food Eng 2002;55:2017. [25] Lahsasni S, Kouhila M, Mahrouz M, Fliyou M. Moisture adsorptiondesorption isotherms of prickly pear cladode (Opuntia cus indica) at dierent temperatures. Energy Convers Manage 2003;44(6):92336. [26] Kouhila M, Belghit A, Daguenet M, Boutaleb BC. Experimental determination of the sorption isotherms of mint (Mentha viridis), sage (Salvia ocinalis) and verbena (Lippia citriodora). J Food Eng 2001;47:2817. [27] Kouhila M, Kechaou N, Otmani M, Fliyou M, Lahsasni S. Experimental study of sorption isotherms and drying kinetics of Moroccan Eucalyptus Globulus. Drying Technol 2002;20(10):202739. [28] Belghit A, Kouhila M, Boutaleb BC. Experimental study of drying kinetics by forced convection of aromatic plants. Energy Convers Manage 2000;44:130321. [29] Basunia MA, Abe T. Moisture desorption isotherms of medium-grain rough rice. J Stored Products Res 2001;37:20519. [30] Hossain MD, Bala BK, Hossain MA, Mondol MRA. Sorption isotherms and heat of sorption of pineapple. J Food Eng 2001;48:1037. [31] Ertekin FK, Sultanoglu M. Moisture sorption isotherm characteristics of peppers. J Food Eng 2001;47:22531. [32] Al Hodali R. Numerical simulation of an agricultural foodstus drying unit using solar energy and adsorption process. Ph.D. Thesis, Universit Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium, 1997. 309 p. e [33] Tsami E. Net isosteric heat of sorption in dried fruits. J Food Eng 1991;14:32735.