Abstract

The aim of this research was to propose models to predict the drying rate of Eucalyptus nitens wood. For this, tangential pieces with a thickness of 36 mm, a width of 100 mm and a length of 1000 mm were used, which were subjected to isothermal drying in a semi-industrial convective chamber, controlling the mass at regular intervals of time. The tests considered two conditions; Condition 1 (dry / wet bulb temperature 40/35 degrees C) and condition 2 (55/50 degrees C), with air velocity 2 (m / s). The Eucalyptus nitens showed decreasing drying phases, while the critical moisture content corresponded to the initial moisture content. The saturation point of the experimental fibers varied with the drying temperature, with an error of up to 6.3% with respect to the theoretical value. The drying rate was significantly affected by moisture content and dry bulb temperature. The results showed that the simple and multiple regression models (p-value: <0.001 and r(2): 0.8623) were significant and highly predictive in determining the drying rate in Eucalyptus nitens wood pieces.