An Innovative Hybrid Drying Technique for Parboiled Rice Production Without Steaming: an Appraisement of the Drying Kinetics, Attributes, Energy Consumption, and Microstructure

Abstract

Hot air fluidized bed drying combined with halogen lamp drying (HAFH) is an innovative hybrid drying technique for parboiled rice production that is more effective than the traditional parboiled rice production (TPP). HAFH can eliminate the steaming process, which is a complex process with high energy consumption, and can also provide a good-quality parboiled rice. The experimental results showed that HAFH achieved faster moisture removal and a higher grain temperature than TPP and the hot air fluidized bed drying technique without a halogen lamp (HAF). The parboiled rice quality and specific energy consumption (SEC) were differently influenced by the production factors (hot air temperature and halogen power) and their interactions. However, the HAFH provides good quality attributes (degree of gelatinization, head rice yield, whiteness index, incidence of white belly, and hardness) equal to those of TPP with a lower SEC in parboiled rice production. Moreover, HAFH generated starch gelatinization both inside and outside of rice grains.