The research team composed by (Prof. Asaad Rahman Saeed Al-Halfi, researcher Muhammad Ali Jassim and researcher Zainab Abdul-Amir Mohsen) in the Department of Food Sciences, College of Agriculture, University of Basrah obtained a patent issued by the Ministry of Planning/Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control to enable them to design, manufacture and test Deep Infrared Food Rotary Dryer The patent included the design and manufacture of an infrared rotary dryer, which consists of a structure, a rotating perforated cylinder, a ventilation fan, an infrared lamp, a thermostat, and an electric motor. The dryer has been tested drying both shrimp and peas. The moisture content was studied on a dry basis, the drying rate, the drying efficiency, and the color components at different temperatures (60, 70 and 80 degrees Celsius). The results showed that the moisture content decreased significantly (p<0.05) with increasing the drying time for shrimp and beans. The results also showed that the drying curve at a diminishing rate is prevalent in shrimp and beans dried by the infrared rotary dryer. The highest drying efficiency of shrimp and beans was at a temperature of 70°C, reaching 89.53% and 88.37%, respectively. The study concluded that the rotary dryer has a high ability to reduce energy consumption, reduce color change and affect the chemical composition of dried food compared to traditional methods.
