Knowledge of the thermal and dielectric properties of wolfberries is essential for understanding the heat transfer and the interaction between the electromagnetic field (10-3000 MHz) and the sample during radio frequency (RF) and microwave (MW) drying. The thermal and dielectric properties of wolfberries were determined as influenced by moisture content from 15.1% to 75.2%, w.b.) and temperature from 25 to 85 °C. The results showed that as the moisture content increased from 15.1% to 75.2% (w.b.), the true density of wolfberries decreased, but the specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity increased with increasing temperature and moisture content. The dielectric properties (DPs) of wolfberries decreased with increasing frequency from 10 to 3000 MHz. The dielectric constant increased with increasing temperature at lower a moisture content (below 45% w.b.) but decreased with increasing temperature at a high moisture content (above 60% w.b.). The cubic and quadratic polynomial models (R2 = 0.977 - 0.997) were best for fitting the dielectric constant and loss factor at four representative frequencies of 27, 40, 915, and 2450 MHz, respectively. The penetration depth increased with the decreased frequency, temperature, and moisture content, and was greater at RF frequencies than MW range, making the RF heating more effective for drying bulk wolfberries. These findings offered essential data before optimizing RF or MW dehydration protocols for wolfberries via computer simulation.
Keywords: dielectric properties; penetration depth; thermal properties; true density; wolfberries.