STUDY OF THE PHYSICOCHEMYCAL KINETICS OF MANGO (Mangifera indica L. Var. Tommy Atkins) TREATED BY COMBINED METHODS OF DRYING

The kinetics for the parameters of weight, water activity (a(w)) and soluble solids gain ((o)Brix) of mango (Mangifera indica L Var. Tommy Arians) cubes were evaluated during the processes of osmotic dehydration with or without vacuum pulse (DOPV and DO) in combination with hot air (SAC) or vacuum (VAC) drying: Observing that DOPV and SAC are the most effective methods since they require less process time to reach its adequate moisture levels for a better consumption and conservation; after obtaining the times for each treatment, physicochemical analysis of pH, tritable acidity, humidity, a(w), (o)Brix, color and texture were carried out to the fruit, and it was found that the DOPV reduces the acidity of the samples and fruits treated by DOPVVAC and DOVAC presented greater variations in their color and more hardness. The analysis concluded that the best combined method is DOPVSAC, since this requires less time to process and possesses acceptable values in the physical and chemical parameters.