Camellia oleifera shell

Reveals moisture migration in Camellia oleifera shell under hot air drying to aid shell explosion control.

Li, Tao · Junming, Zhang · Xin, Tang · Liu, Muhua · Ai, Ziping · Xiao, Zhifeng · Mowafy, Samir G. · Jinjie, Tong

Food Production, Processing and Nutrition 2026

Specifications

Shrinkage rate

{'zh': '43.1%~65.3%', 'en': '43.1%~65.3%'} %

Shell explosion rate ratio (50 °C/70 °C)

{'zh': '8.3', 'en': '8.3'} %

Advance rate of shell explosion starting time

{'zh': '44', 'en': '44'} %

Advantages

Low temperature greatly reduces shell explosion

The shell explosion rate at 50 °C is only 8.3% of that at 70 °C, so lowering the drying temperature can effectively reduce explosion loss.

Shell explosion starts earlier at 70 °C

The starting time of shell explosion at 70 °C is 44% earlier than at 50 °C; high temperature accelerates the explosion process.

Binding energy near zero at high moisture

When the moisture content is ≥70% (d.b.), the moisture binding energy is close to zero, and this point can be used as a reference for adjusting drying parameters.

Applications

• Camellia oleifera processing：Control shell explosion during drying to reduce seed loss.
• Drying process optimization：Use 70% (d.b) moisture content as the reference point for binding energy to optimize drying parameters.
• Agricultural product drying：Provide shrinkage data of Camellia oleifera shell for designing drying equipment and processes.
• Shell explosion control：Choose 50 °C drying to drastically reduce explosion rate while maintaining drying efficiency.