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A new rotary infrared dryer (R.I.D.) was manufactured to dry shrimp (Metapenaeus affinis) at 60, 70, and 80 C. Also, mathematical modeling along with artificial neural networks (ANNs) was used for data prediction. The results showed that the exponential proposed model and ANN could be applied to well-predict the moisture ratio of shrimp. Besides, running R.I.D. at 80 C resulted in the highest reduction in moisture content and saved about 42% of drying time. The thermal efficiency of the R.I.D. at a temperature of 70 C ranged between 83 and 89%, which was about 15% higher than the conventional dryer. The drying rate by both R.I.D. and conventional methods consist of a falling rate period, ranging between 1.68 Â 10 À4 and 0.47 Â 10 À4 1/s. Furthermore, the mass transfer coefficient increased by about 104.6% when drying temperature increased from 60 to 80 C. The browning index increased with the increase of drying temperature. Specific energy consumption, browning index, and drying time of rotary infrared system were lower than those of conventional system by 46.9, 33.3, and 34.7%, respectively. R.I.D. reduced energy consumption, decreased the color changes, improved the rehydration ratio, and affected the chemical composition of dried shrimp as compared with the conventional process. Practical ApplicationsA new rotary infrared dryer was designed and developed and its performance was evaluated with the assistance of artificial neural networks. This system was shown to be energy-and time-saving and capable of producing high-quality dry shrimp (Metapenaeus affinis). Also, the system is simple and affordable due to reducing energy consumption and relatively low cost of components. Therefore, it has the potential to be used in the industry after further economic and technical evaluation. | INTRODUCTIONShrimp is a rich source of calcium, vitamins, protein, extractable compounds, vitamin B12, selenium, omega-3, highly unsaturated fatty acids, and astaxanthin. Also, it has a natural flavor and is considered a segment in the salad, pasta curry, soup, stir-fried dishes, but it has low calories and saturated fat (Göko glu, 2021). Drying is an effective and cheap method of food preservation, in addition to the convenience of preservation, and the flavor of dried shrimp is desirable (Guochen, Arason, & Arnason, 2010) and reduces enzymes activity due to

A theoretical and practical study was conducted for the vacuum solar dryer, which locally manufactured to drying of salted and unsalted carp Fish and compared with natural sun drying and vacuum electric dryer in Basrah province for the period from October 2011 to July 2012. The study included simplifying the Crank's equation to predict the theory moisture content compared with practical data. Solar radiation intensity, temperature in the atmosphere and in the solar dried were measured. The results indicated a convergence is too big between the theoretical and practical moisture content and coefficient of determination ranged between 0.8848-0.9503. The average temperature in the solar dryer 50°C in all days of the year with sunny weather while on cloudy days, the temperature in the solar dryer reached to 43°C with fluctuations in solar radiation intensity. The moisture content results of dried Fish by vacuum solar dryer and vacuum electric dryer were convergent but it is significantly better than natural sun-drying method.

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