Food Drying and Modeling Open access Peer reviewed

Drying of Schisandra chinensis: Process Engineering, Kinetics, Quality Evolution, and Scale-Up Challenges

Li Li, Jiaming Cui, Yi Zhao, Yunfeng Pang and 1 more

Processes | Oct 26, 2026

Abstract

Abstract

Schisandra chinensis is a high-value medicinal and edible fruit rich in lignans, polysaccharides, oligosaccharides, organic acids, and volatile compounds. Drying is an essential postharvest processing step for extending shelf life and stabilizing quality due to the high-moisture content and rapid postharvest deterioration of fresh fruits. This review critically evaluates drying strategies for S. chinensis, including conventional (shade and sun-drying), thermal (hot air, infrared, and heat pump drying), vacuum freeze-drying, microwave drying, and pretreatment-assisted approaches by integrating processing performance and quality evolution, with emphasis on drying kinetics, energy demand, shrinkage, and changes in major quality-related compounds. Current evidence supports hot-air drying as the most established scalable option, whereas vacuum freeze-drying improves retention of selected heat-sensitive constituents at greater complexity and cost. Microwave and pretreatment-assisted strategies show potential, while infrared and heat pump drying require further validation for S. chinensis. Critically, effective moisture diffusivity and energy data for intact fruits remain scarce, and constant geometry diffusion models may be biased by shrinkage. Future studies should integrate kinetics, energy, water activity and microbial safety, multi-component quality, and pilot-scale validation using standardized reporting.

Direct answer

What can I do from this paper page?

Use this page to scan "Drying of Schisandra chinensis: Process Engineering, Kinetics, Quality Evolution, and Scale-Up Challenges" quickly: start with the summary and abstract, then check the authors, source, topics, and related papers. From here, open Scollr to follow Food Drying and Modeling research, save the paper, or map adjacent work.

Authors

Researchers on this paper

Li Li

first | Harbin University of Commerce

Jiaming Cui

middle | Harbin University of Commerce

Yi Zhao

middle | Harbin University of Commerce

Yunfeng Pang

middle | Harbin University of Commerce

Wenlan Li

last | Harbin University of Commerce

Research areas

Follow related topics

Citation

BibTeX

@article{Li2026Drying,
  title = {Drying of Schisandra chinensis: Process Engineering, Kinetics, Quality Evolution, and Scale-Up Challenges},
  author = {Li Li and Jiaming Cui and Yi Zhao and Yunfeng Pang and Wenlan Li},
  journal = {Processes},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.3390/pr14213428},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.3390/pr14213428}
}

FAQ

Using this paper in a discovery workflow

How do I find related work for this paper?

Use the related papers and topic links on this page as starting points. In Scollr, you can also open the paper and build a literature map around its references, citing papers, and related work.

How can I keep up with new Food Drying and Modeling research papers?

Follow Food Drying and Modeling research in Scollr. New papers from the topic flow into a personalized feed, and you can save useful studies to revisit later.

Can I cite this paper from this page?

This page includes a static BibTeX block for Drying of Schisandra chinensis: Process Engineering, Kinetics, Quality Evolution, and Scale-Up Challenges. Always verify the DOI, source, and publication details against the publisher record before submitting a manuscript.

Follow this research in Scollr

Follow the topics and authors behind this paper, save useful studies, and build a literature map when you are ready to go deeper.

Get the app