Numerical simulation and experimental study of heat and mass transfer in cylinder-like vegetables during vacuum cooling

Abstract Vacuum cooling is an established technology widely applied on the processing of harvested vegetables. For the purpose of investigating heat and mass transfer in vacuum cooling of cylindrical vegetables, a mathematical model was established and eggplants were selected as research target. Comparison of simulated and experimental data was conducted for the validation of the mathematical model. Additional simulation was carried out to study the influence of pressure reduction rate on the temperature variation. The results show that the maximum error of temperature and weight loss are 14.2% and 18.3%. It is also found that temperature difference tends to be smaller when the pressure reduction rate increases. Data obtained from the simulation are consistent with experimental value, and the present study on influence of pressure reduction rate is helpful to the optimization of vacuum cooling process.