Benguet State University

College of Engineering and Applied Technology

Km. 5, La Trinidad, Benguet

MOISTURE CONTENT DETERMINATION

OF SABA (Musa acuminata) AT 66℃

Bugnay, Jula Claire E., Owaban, Ivy Joy A., Pasian, Mildred M., Sison, Ariel A.

ABSTRACT
This paper presents an activity of moisture reduction determination and evaluation of
sensory characteristics of sliced oven dried half ripe saba in terms of appearance, texture, odor
and taste at a maintained temperature of 66℃. The experiment was carried out at the Department
of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering laboratory, Benguet State University, Benguet,
Philippines. The saba was chosen as the main material and it was dried using the oven
dehydrator. The result shows that the moisture reduction of the sliced oven dried half ripe saba
ranges from 79% up to 96% and all the variables evaluated show a very desirable rating from the
respondents.
OBJECTIVES:
The goal of the activity were:
a. To determine the moisture reduction of oven dried sliced half ripe saba samples at a
maintained temperature of 66℃.
b. To evaluate the characteristics of the oven dried sliced half ripe saba samples, such as
appearance, texture, smell and taste indexes on the respondents.

INTRODUCTION
Saba (Musa acuminata), a variety of banana, is a triploid hybrid (ABB) banana cultivar
originating from Philippines. It is primarily a cooking banana, though it can be eaten raw. It is
the most important banana varieties in Philippine cuisine. Aside from its culinary purposes, it
also contains numerous nutrients, water, vitamins, and minerals, which are beneficial to the body
that can help us to resolve several health issues. Among these, water, or moisture in banana is an
important factor in order to prolong its shelf life. In addition, moisture determination influences
the nutritional evaluation of banana when converting the nutrient contents to a dry matter (DM)
basis. Thus, an accurate measure of moisture content in banana is essential.
 The oven-drying method for moisture determination has been widely used; this method
measures the weight loss following heating of a sample. Drying by microwaves is faster, more
uniform and energetically efficient as compared to conventional process. Although the oven
method has been commonly used for estimating the loss on drying (LOD), this procedure has
several limitations because the results of the LOD vary depending on the drying temperature and
time. During the drying process volatile substances can be lost and unintended chemical
reactions may occur (Mo and Tjornhom, 1978).
Making products such as banana chips, banana juices, sweet concentrated pulp and dried
bananas are one of the source of income of Filipino. Dried bananas are mostly consumed on the
internal market and are generally produced by small manufacturing establishments located near
the banana growing areas, although the sensory quality desired by the consumers has yet to be
attained, currently being characterized by the color, texture, hardness, taste and aroma
(Travaglini et al, 1993). These characteristics are probably due to processing deficiencies such as
temperature, lengthy drying time, the oven and also the banana itself.

METHODOLOGY
MATERIALS
The materials used in the activity were stainless knife, chopping board,
weighing scale, wax paper, stainless steel tray, plastic container with lid and oven
dehydrator.

For the samples, 4 pcs of half ripe saba with an average measurement of
30mm diameter x 120mm length were bought at the La Trinidad Public Market.

Figure 1. Utensils and equipment used in the activity.

SAMPLE PREPARATION
The saba were examined for physical damage to ensure good condition
before oven drying. It was hand-peeled and cut into same sizes and thickness. A
total of 36 slices were produced, then, six random samples were chosen for
observation. Initial weight (grams) of the sample was taken and recorded. After
weighing, all the sliced saba inclusive of the six samples were arranged in a six
columns and in six rows order on a stainless steel tray. The oven dehydrator was
preheated at 66℃ for five minutes before the samples were subjected to drying.
The temperature was maintained at 66℃ for the entire drying procedure. This
activity was performed at the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems
Engineering Laboratory, Benguet State University, Benguet, Philippines.

Data Gathering Procedure

Initial Mass
The initial weight of sliced half ripe saba samples was determined
using a digital weighing scale and a weighed 2.5” by 3” tracing paper
(calibrated to 0).

During Dehydration Process

The trays of samples were taken out for weighing every 20 minutes
interval until the sliced half ripe saba sample reach its constant weight.

Moisture Content and Reduction

The average weight of the sliced half ripe saba (initial, during,
dried) was determined, recorded, graphed, and tabulated. The moisture
content (%) was computed using the moisture content dry weight
FW −ODW
formula, MC db= X 100, where MC db is the moisture content
ODW
dry basis (%), FW is the fresh weight in grams of the samples, and ODW
is the oven dried weight (grams) of the samples.
Evaluation
The oven dried sliced half ripe saba samples were evaluated by 30
respondents (BSU students) using the Likert Scale with the degree of
desirability (undesirable, moderately desirable, desirable, very desirable
and strongly desirable) for the characteristics of its appearance, texture,
smell, and taste.
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
This chapter presents the results of how the moisture reduction of oven dried sliced half
ripe saba samples at a maintained temperature of 66℃. Also, it shows the evaluation of the
characteristics of the oven dried sliced half ripe saba samples, such as appearance, texture,
smell, and taste indexes from respondents.
Table 1 shows the decreasing weight of the random samples corresponding to the length
of drying procedure. From the average initial weight of 1.855 grams, the random samples
reached a constant weight of 0.753 grams on the 19th time of weight measurement after it was
oven dried for 360 minutes (6 hours).
Figure 2 shows the difference in moisture content percentage of the 6 random ripe saba
samples. Sample 4 has the highest computed moisture content with 96.32%, followed by
sample 6 (94.34%), then sample 1 (94.1%), sample 3 (90.13%), sample 2 (88.76%) and
sample 5 with the lowest mc of 79.94%.
Figure 3 shows the Likert Scale degree of desirability wherein 30 respondents rated the
texture, taste, appearance, and smell of the random samples. The highest percentage rate
recorded was that of very desirable (40%) followed by desirable (33%) then moderately
desirable (27%). None of the respondents rated the sample strongly desirable and
undesirable.

TABLE 1. Average Weight (grams) Reduction of the Six Pieces Sliced Half Ripe Saba
Samples Subjected to 66 ˚C Oven Drying at 20 Minutes Interval.

NO. OF TIME NO. OF TIME AVERRAGE

AVERAGE
WEIGHT (min) WEIGHT (min) (grams)
(grams)
COLLECTION COLLECTION
1 (initial weight) 0 1.855 12 220 0.79
2 20 1.725 13 240 0.781
3 40 1.566 14 260 0.774
4 60 1.364 15 280 0.771
5 80 1.216 16 300 0.766
6 100 1.067 17 320 0.762
7 120 0.97 18 340 0.754
8 140 0.89 19 360 0.753
9 160 0.85 20 380 0.753
10 180 0.825 21 400 0.753
11 200 0.805 22 420 0.753

Figure 2 .Moisture Content Percentage of the Six Pieces Oven Dried Sliced Half Ripe
Saba Samples Subjected to 66 ºC Oven Drying At 20 Minutes Interval.

Moisture Content(%) of the 6 Sliced Oven Dried Saba

Samples
Figure 3. 120
Oven Dried 100
Moisture Content (%)

Sliced Half
80
Ripe
Banana 60
94.1 96.32 94.34
Samples 40 88.76 90.13
79.94
Evaluation
20
Survey
0
SAMPLE 1 SAMPLE 2 SAMPLE 3 SAMPLE 4 SAMPLE 5 SAMPLE 6

MC (%)

OVEN DRIED SLICED HALF RIPE SABA SAMPLE EVALUATION

45%
40%
35%
30%
25%
20% 40%
33%
15%
27%
10%
5%
0% 0%
0%
Strongly Very desirable Desirable (%) Moderately Undesirable
desirable (%) (%) desirable (%) (%)
SUMMARY
The activity was conducted to determine the moisture reduction of oven dried
sliced half ripe banana samples at a maintained temperature of 66℃ and to evaluate the
characteristics of the oven dried sliced half ripe banana samples, such as appearance,
texture, smell and taste indexes on the respondents. The activity was performed at the
Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Departmental Laboratory,
Benguet State University, Benguet, Philippines. The sliced half ripe banana samples were
subjected for oven drying at 66°C with 20 minutes time interval. The mass of the
representative samples were taken for 22 times until they attained their constant mass.
The moisture reduction and moisture content of the representative samples was then
taken and the characteristics such as appearance, texture, smell and taste was evaluated
by 30 respondents. The average moisture reduction of the six sliced half ripe banana
samples ranged from 0.753 to 1.725 grams. The moisture content of the samples ranged
from 79% to 96%. The characteristics of the sliced oven dried half ripe bananas were
evaluated using the Likert Scale. Out of 30 respondents, the products have a very
desirable characteristics in terms of appearance, texture, smell and taste.

CONCLUSION
In the presented paper, the moisture reduction and content of the 6 random samples varies
from each other. Furthermore, the general desirability of the oven dried samples was rated as
very desirable basing on the opinion of 30 respondents. In addition, the samples needs to be oven
dried for at least 6 hours to reach a constant dried weight.

RECOMMENDATION
The researchers recommends comparative studies such as different variety of banana or
different samples of fruits to determine the difference in moisture content, duration of drying to
achieve a constant dried weight and desirability of the dried product. Moreover, the researchers
also recommends to study the relationship of the data variables to further understand the
importance of the experiment.

REFERENCES
[1] Abanao E. E. and Sam-Amoah L. K. (2011): Effect of different pretreatments on drying
characteristics of Banana slices. ARPN Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences
[2] Mo, M. and T. Tjornhom. (1978), Losses Carbon-Containing Substances During Dry
Matter Determenition by Oven Drying. Acta Agric. Scand. 28:,196-202
[3] Travaglini, D.A., Neto, M.P., Bleinroth, E.W., and Leitao, M.F. (1993). Banana-Passa:
Principles de Secagem, Conservacao e Producao Industrial-Campinas:ITAL/ Rede Nucleos de
Informao Technologica, 7p. (Manual Technicol)

ATTACHMENTS AND DOCUMENTATION

A. Sample Preparation

B. Evaluation Sheet