摘要：In this work, a moisture dependent phase change criterion was considered
in Luikov´s heat and mass transfer equations and the drying process of a
biological product was investigated. Laboratory experiments were conducted to
measure the temperature and the moisture content of sweet potato samples
during drying. A finite element formulation was used to solve the coupled
system of equations. The inverse problem methodology was applied to estimate
the parameters of the proposed functional relationship by minimizing
the deviation of experimental data and numerical predictions. Numerical
simulation showed good agreement with the measured temperature and moisture
values. By including a variable phase change criterion it was possible to
reproduce the trends of behaviour of temperatures profiles during drying of
sweet potato, suggesting that evaporation inside the sample depends on
the local moisture content.
