Diseño de un proceso industrial para la elaboración de una infusión o té a partir de residuos agroindustriales (cascarilla de cacao) en la asociación Tsatsayaku

Abstract

The aim of this work was to design an industrial process for the elaboration of an infusion using agro-industrial waste (cacao husk) at Tsatsayaku Association located in Nueva Esperanza parish, Napo province. To achieve this, different tests were carried out at laboratory scale in order to obtain the best formulation, the most appropriate treatment and the process variables for the preparation of the infusion. A completely randomized experimental design was used with three formulations (2020, 2021 and 2022) and three temperatures (50, 60 and 70) degrees Celsius; Resulting in nine treatments with three repetitions each one. After performing a statistical analysis of variance and the Tukey and Scheffe tests, it was determined that treatment four was the optimal one for the drying process, which corresponds to the 2020 formulation (80% cocoa husk and 20% guayusa leaves) dried at 60 degrees Celsius for 3.5 hours. Likewise, it was determined that the unit operations that include: drying, grinding and sieving, with their corresponding process variables: temperature (60 degrees Celsius), drying time (3.5h), humidity of the sample (less than 5%) and particle size (0.5mm) are those that have the greatest impact on the characteristics of the final product. Finally, for the validation of the process, the physicochemical and microbiological parameters and contaminant content were analyzed according to the NTE INEN 2381: 2005 regulation, verifying that the product meets all the requirements. Similarly, based on a cost-benefit analysis, it is concluded that the process is economically profitable, and it is recommended to implement different formulations for the infusion that maintain the cocoa shell as a base in order to diversify the products.