Moisture sorption process in parsley foliage (Petroselinum sativum var. latifolium)

Abstract

The sorption process of water molecules in parsley foliage is characterized through mathematical modeling. The method used was static according to the analytical technique of hygroscopic equilibrium at room temperature. The experimental values were fitted to six mathematical models and the curve obtained was classified according to its shape and adsorption levels. The fresh samples represented the desorption and the dry ones the adsorption from 75% relative humidity. Different types of isotherm were obtained and a hysteresis loop was evident in the three curves for different water activities. The
DAW, Halsey and Oswin models best described sorption, determined the conditions to evidence the hysteresis phenomenon in the samples and established the range of moisture content that fresh and dry parsley foliage must present in order to guarantee maximum durability to room temperature.