EuroDrying’2017 – 6th European Drying Conference

Liège, Belgium, 19-21 June 2017

STUDY OF THE EFFECT OF DIFFFRENT DRYING

TECHNIQUES ON NUTRITIONAL QUALITY OF TOMATO
"SOLANUM LYCOPERSICUM L."

Hicham EL FEROUALI1, Naima ZEHHAR2, Fatiha BENKHALTI2, Hafida

BOUAMAMA2, Said DOUBABI1, , Naji ABDENOURI1
1
LSET, Applied Physics Department, Cadi Ayyad University Marrakesh, Morocco.
2
Biotechnologie de la Valorisation et la Protection des Agro-ressources Chimie Bioorganique et
Macromoléculaire, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech 4000 Morocco.
.
E-mail of the corresponding author: n.abdenouri@uca.ac.ma

Abstract: The drying techniques’ effect on tomatoes quality was investigated. To assess the
quality of the dried product, the following parameters are taken into account: titrable acidity,
polyphenoloxidase activity, sugar, proteins, vitamin C, total polyphenols and lycopene
contents. In this work, four drying techniques were used: freeze-drying, forced convection
drying, direct sunlight drying and microwave drying. By the freeze-drying technique, the best
nutritional and physicochemical qualities of tomatoes were reached since that the titrable
acidity and the polyphenol oxidases activity records lowest values. In addition, sugars,
proteins, vitamin C, polyphenols and lycopene contents were higher as compared to the other
drying techniques. By using a forced convection solar drying device, only drying at low
temperature (about 40 °C) leads to acceptable quality parameters.

Keywords: Tomatoes “Solanum lycopersicum”, sunlight and convection drying, freeze-drying,

microwave drying, nutritional quality.

Introduction

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) ranks the third place in the world production for its
many virtues on human health and its use in many plants [1]. This product has a high
nutritional value, including lycopene on which some studies have shown that it prevents the
onset of some diseases such as prostate cancer [2]. The increased demand of seasonal foods,
especially tomato which is a highly perishable fruit, requires the use of appropriate and
effective techniques of post-harvest conservation in order to ensure the supply and the
preservation of its nutrients [3]. Drying is one of the common techniques used for the
preservation of food, particularly fruit and vegetables.
Several physical, chemical, biochemical and microbiological changes could occur during
drying and storage [4].
Direct sunlight drying is one of the most common and convenient drying method of fruits
and vegetables in the developing countries. However, prolonged exposure of the food to
sunlight deteriorate there quality attributes such as color, flavor, texture, stability of
micronutrients and the ability to rehydration [5, 6]. In some favorable cases, other techniques
are used such as freeze drying where sublimation at low temperature stops most of
deterioration and microbiological reactions. Despite of many advantages, freeze-drying has
always been recognized as an expensive process in terms of energy consumption.
The aim of this study is to compare the drying methods’ effect on nutritional quality of
dried tomatoes. In this paper, four drying techniques were explored: freeze-drying, forced

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Liège, Belgium, 19-21 June 2017

convection drying (at 40, 50 and 60 °C), direct sunlight drying and microwave drying. To
assess the quality of the dried product, seven parameters were taken into account: titrable
acidity, polyphenol oxidase activity, sugar, proteins, vitamin C, total polyphenols and
lycopene contents.
Materials and Methods

Drying techniques

The drying parameters for each technique are presented below:

• For the direct sunlight drying, samples (tomato slices) (100 ± 0.02 g) were placed directly
under solar radiation (a mean of 850 W/m²) for 2 days (discontinuous drying).
• For the forced convection drying, tomato slices were uniformly weighed and regularly
distributed on the drying chamber. Three drying temperatures were tested, 40, 50 and 60
°C. The weight of the product is measured by removing it from the drying chamber for
approximately 15 to 20 s. All experiments are performed at an air flow of 300 m3/h.
• For freeze-drying, 100 mg of samples were frozen at -20 °C and then lyophilized during 17
hours using a lyophilizer (Alpha 2-4 LP+) at a temperature of -80 °C and a pressure of
0.001 mbar.
• For microwave drying, (100 ± 0.02 g) of samples were dried at a power of 200 W for 2
hours in an analytical microwave.

Biochemical characterization

The used biochemical protocols for the determination of the studied quality parameters
are described below:
The measurement of titratable acidity is performed according to the method described by
Türkmen and Ekşi [7]. The titration of the free acid is performed with NaOH solution (0.1N)
in the presence of phenolphthalein as a color indicator. 1 g of the sample is placed in a conical
flask with 30 ml of distilled water, boiled and then cooled. The mixture is heated in a water
bath for 30 min at 100 °C. After cooling, the mixture is filtered and then the supernatant was
poured into a volumetric flask of 100 ml. The distilled water is added to the solution up to the
gauge. 10 ml of the filtrate is added to 10 ml of distilled water and few drops of
phenolphthalein. Finally, the titration is done with NaOH (0.1N) until the color of the solution
becomes pink.
Sugar content was determined by the method described by Dubois et al. [8]. 200 mg of
tomato’s samples are ground in 5 ml of ethanol at 80 %. Then, the solution is centrifuged at
5000 rpm for 10 min. 0.1 ml of the supernatant was added to 1 ml of phenol at 5 % and 5 ml
of concentrated H2SO4. The mixture is put into a boiling water bath for 20 min, and then
cooled in the dark. The Absorbance of all the sample solutions was measured at 495 nm.
Sugar content was determined by reference to standard range of Glucose.
Total protein determination is performed according to Bradford [9]. 100 mg of samples
were ground in 2 ml cold phosphate buffer (pH = 6.8). The extract was centrifuged at 4 °C for
20 min at 12 500 g. Then, 50 µl of the supernatant is added to 100 µl of distilled water and 2
ml of Bradford reagent. The mixture is stirred and the homogenate is incubated for 5 min at
27 °C. The absorbance is determined at 595 nm.
For the determination of vitamin C content; the used method is the direct titration of
vitamin C with diiodine. 1 g of the product was homogenized with 50 ml of distilled water.
After filtering, 10 ml of the filtrate was added to 10 ml of distilled water and a few drops of
starch. Titration was carried out by diiodine at 5.10-3 mol/l until discoloration.

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For the determination of total phenols; 100 mg of samples were ground in 2 ml of

methanol at 80 %. Then, the mixture was sonicated for 10 min in an ultrasonic bath
containing distilled water. The homogenates were centrifuged at 15 000 g during 10 min.
Supernatant (phenolic extracts) was tested by a differential assay in the presence and absence
of polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP) according to Bridi et al. [10]. Samples were passed
through three cycles of pretreatment. At first, 50 mg of PVPP was added to 500 µl of the
supernatant. After thus, the solution was centrifuged at 10000 g for 5 min. Finally, 250 µl of
the phenol extract was recovered, and 25 mg of PVPP was added to the mixture. The total
polyphenol concentration was determined using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent according to the
method adapted by Singleton and Rossi [11].
The followed method for the determination of polyphenoloxidases activity is: Tomato
samples (100 mg) were crushed in liquid nitrogen. Then, 2 ml of phosphate buffer (50 mM;
pH 7.8) containing the insoluble polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP) at 1 % and 0.1
mM_EDTA were added. The extract was centrifuged at 4 °C for 20 min at 12 500 g.
Measuring the activity of polyphenoloxydase (PPO) is carried out in phosphate buffer (100
mM; pH 6). The reaction is initiated by adding 160 mg/l of catechol as substrate and 50 µl of
enzyme extract.
For the determination of lycopen content; 1 g of tomato sample was extracted in 20 ml of
hexane/methanol/acetone (50/25/25) (V/V/V) containing 0.05 % BHT (di-tert-Butyl Hydroxy
Toluene). The homogenate is vortexed for 15 min, 5 ml of distilled water is added to the
homogenate and then it is agitated again for 5 min. The extract is then incubated for 5 min
before spectrometric determination of lycopene. For spectrometric determination, 0.1 g of
anhydrous sodium sulphate was added to 2 ml of the extract solution and shaken manually for
30 seconds. Then the solution was transferred in a 10 ml vial containing 0.4 ml of hexane
with 0.4 % of BHT. This flask is filled with hexane to the gauge line. The measurement of the
absorbance was performed at 502 nm.

Statistical analysis

All measurements were performed in triplicate and are reported as mean and standard
deviation. All data were analyzed using the SPSS 21.0 statistical package. An analysis of
variance (ANOVA) followed by the Student Newman–Keuls post hoc test was used to
compare differences in the means. The level of significance was defined as P<0.05.

Results and discussion

The effect of the different drying techniques on the nutritional quality parameters of
tomatoes is presented below:

Effect on titratable acidity

The highest titratable acidity was recorded by the direct sunlight drying, and the forced
convection techniques at 60 °C (0.109 and 0.107 meq citric acid/100 g DM respectively). The
minimum value (0.09 meq citric acid/100 g DM) was obtained by the forced convection
drying at 40 °C (Fig. 1). The high values of titratable acidity of the direct sunlight dried
samples could be related to the partial fermentation of the samples due to the prolonged
drying time, and to the activity of enzymes at the pectins degradation [12]. Furthermore, the
rise of the organic acids’ concentration under the effect of the increase of temperature leads
also to increase the titrable acidity [13], and then to changes in flavor and aroma of tomatoes
[14].

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Fig. 1. Titratable acidity (meq citric acid / 100g DM) in tomatoes.

Effect on total sugars content

Sugar content increased gradually with temperature in forced convection drying. In

addition, low values were recorded in direct sunlight drying. In the other hand, the highest
value (36.33 µg equivalent glucose/mg DM) was obtained by freeze-drying (Fig. 2).
Increasing the sugar content of dried samples could be explained by the loss of water during
drying that leads to the concentration of sugars. Indeed, Bondaruk et al. [6] showed that the
sugar content increases significantly during drying of potato cubes.

Fig. 2. Total sugars (µg equivalent glucose/mg DM) in tomatoes.

Effect on total protein content

The maximum value (0.78 µg protein /mg DM) was obtained by freeze-drying technique,
followed by the microwave technique (Fig. 3). Otherwise, protein levels decreases by
increasing temperature. Hence, drying at low temperatures preserves the protein quality of the
final product. In fact, increasing the drying temperature affects the protein due to the rupture
of hydrophobic bonds, which causes protein denaturation [15].

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Fig. 3. Protein content (µg protein / mg DM) in tomatoes.

Effect on total polyphenol content

The highest total polyphenol content is obtained by freeze drying (8.30 µg gallic acid
equivalent/mg DM) (Fig. 4). Otherwise, increasing the temperature of the forced convection
drying negatively influenced the total polyphenol content. These results are in agreement with
those found by Georgé et al. [16], in which the total polyphenol content decreased
significantly during drying of red tomatoes by 43 % and yellow ones by 28 %.

Fig. 4. Total polyphenol content (µg gallic acid equivalent /mg DM) in tomatoes.

Effect on the polyphenoloxydase activity (PPO)

PPO activity is very high for dried tomatoes by forced convection at 40 and 50 °C
(214.53 and 192.06 EU/mg protein/min, respectively), whereas it is very low for dried
tomatoes by freeze-drying (61.63 EU/mg protein/min) and by microwave at 40 °C (53.04
EU/mg protein / min) (Fig. 5). Studies by Chang et al. [17] on apple cubes have shown that
the curves of the PPO activity showed a peak at low temperatures. In addition, Spagna et al.
[18] found that the optimum temperature of the PPO activity of tomatoes ranges between 40
and 55 °C.

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Fig. 5. Polyphenoloxydase activity (EU/mg protein/min) in tomatoes.

Effect on the lycopene content

The highest lycopene content is registered by the freeze-drying technique. This content
(115.09 mg/kg DM) is almost 4 times higher than the direct sunlight dried tomatoes’ content
(27.14 mg/kg DM) which is the lowest value compared to all tested drying techniques (Fig.
6). In addition, there is no significant difference of lycopene content between forced
convection drying technique at 40, 50 and 60 °C. The increase of lycopene content may be
related to the deterioration of the cell walls.

Fig. 6. Lycopene content (mg/kg DM) in tomatoes.

Effect on vitamin C content

The highest content is observed for the freeze dried tomatoes (12.36 mg/g DM), followed
by the forced convection drying 40 °C, then the microwave drying and convection drying at
50 °C. Also, the increase of temperature during drying causes a decrease of the levels of
vitamin C (Fig. 7). Similarly, Gregory [19] reported that the loss of ascorbic acid content has
been attributed to chemical degradation involving the oxidation of ascorbic acid.

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Fig. 7. Vitamin C content (mg/g DM) in tomatoes.

Conclusion

The present paper spots the impact of drying methods on nutritional quality and
physicochemical properties of tomatoes (Roma variety). Four techniques were considered:
direct sunlight drying, forced convection drying at 40, 50 and 60 °C, freeze drying and
microwave drying. For convection drying; 40 °C leads to satisfactory results since that the
titratable acidity equals only to 0.09 meq citric acid/100g DM while the protein content,
vitamin C, polyphenols and PPO activity were relatively high, they are equal respectively to
0.57 µg protein/mg DM, 8.85 mg/g DM, 4.10 mg gallic acid equivalent/mg DM and 214.53
EU/mg protein/min.
Dried tomatoes by direct sunlight method presented a low nutritional quality with low
contents of respectively: protein (0.43 µg protein/mg DM), total sugars (19.82 µg/mg DM),
lycopene (27.14 mg/kg DM), total polyphenols (2.57 µg gallic acid equivalent /mg DM) and
vitamin C (5.19 mg/g DM). On the other hand, these tomatoes showed high PPO activity
(103.75 EU/mg protein/min).
For microwave drying, dried tomatoes had a reduced total polyphenol content (2.42 µg
gallic acid equivalent / mg DM) and low PPO activity (53.04 EU/mg protein/min).
Freeze-drying reaches good nutritional quality and physico-chemical tomato. Indeed,
titratable acidity was only 0.092 meq citric acid/100 g DM and PPO activity was very low
(61.63 EU/mg protein/min).
The freeze-drying method results in the best nutritional quality of the final product. But,
this method need advanced technology and it consumes a lot of energy. So as freeze drying
could be restricted to higher value products. Contrariwise, forced convection drying at 40 °C
reaches acceptable quality dried product with significant energy saving, and it is more suitable
for most crop producing countries.

Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the research institute for solar energy and new energies
(IRESEN) as part of the project SSH and all of the authors are grateful to the IRESEN
institute for its cooperation.

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