A two-dimensional spouted bed dryer was used to study the drying process of black beans (Phaseolus vulgaris, L). The equipment dimensions were: height of 100 cm, width of 10 cm and length of 40 cm. A blower of 7 cv was used to supply the air necessary for the spout formation on the apparatus and no additional heat was necessary. The temperature at the air inlet was around 50º C. The experiments were carried out according to factorial planning, with a complementary experiment set. In this work the effects of the drying time, and the apparatus air velocity were evaluated in relation to mass grain capacity of each batch as well as cooking time, water absorption, particle diameter and particle density. It also fitted the acquired data from experimental runs into the correlations based on the variables: drying time, air velocity and mass of particulated material used in the dryer. The drying rate was studied. The experimental results led to the conclusion that the conditions process studied did not significantly affected the physical and technological properties of beans and reduced the grain moisture content to 40 % of the initial value.
drying; black beans; two- dimensional spouted bed
