Optimizing the drying process for lemongrass and Basil: A trade-off between drying efficiency and essential oil quality
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT Aromatic herbs produce essential oils comprising volatile and lipophilic compounds derived from secondary metabolism. These plants must be dried immediately after harvesting under controlled conditions to preserve their chemical profile. Herein, we investigated the drying behavior of lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) and white basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) leaves and evaluated the effect of drying air temperature (40 °C, 50 °C, and 60 °C) on the yield and composition of essential oil. The experiments were conducted in a completely randomized design with a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement. Hydrodistillation using a Clevenger apparatus was employed to extract essential oils. The drying data were fitted to nonlinear mathematical models. Increasing temperature decreased drying time and increased drying rate. The Page model was the most suitable for describing the drying kinetics of lemongrass, whereas the Modified Page model was the most suitable for basil. The drying temperature significantly affected essential oil yield, with 40 °C providing the highest yields (2.259% for lemongrass and 2.64% for basil). In basil, 1,8-cineole (14.14%-32.52%) and linalool (27.32%-46.08%) were the major compounds identified, whereas in lemongrass, geranial (51.59%-55.38%) was identified. Temperature also changed oil composition, affecting the relative abundance of key compounds. Overall, the study results indicate a practical trade-off: lower temperatures preserve essential oil yield and chemical integrity; in contrast, higher temperatures enhance drying efficiency at the expense of compositional stability. Our findings will help guide temperature selection based on whether the industrial objective prioritizes drying performance or essential oil quality.
Source: Ciência e Agrotecnologia
Language: English
Topic: Food Drying and Modeling
Subfield: Food Science
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $240
OpenAlex ID: W7166104458