Effects of Moisture Absorption of Tobacco Stems from Different Areas on Grouping for Processing

In order to study the moisture absorption of tobacco stems from different areas and group tobacco stems according to their moisture absorption,the cut tobacco stem processing was simulated in laboratory.The effects of dipping temperature and time on the increase of moisture content in stems from different areas were investigated with single factor test,and the cluster analysis of experimental data were conducted.Tobacco stems were grouped and processed on an actual production line for validation.The results showed that:1) Stem dipping temperature,producing areas and their interaction extremely significantly affected the increase of moisture content in stems,as did dipping time,producing areas and their interactions.At the same processing parameters,the increase of moisture content in stems from different areas differed greatly,which indicated that mixing stems from different areas for processing was not beneficial to the consistance of moisture content in stems.2) According to the results of cluster analysis,it was recommended to divide tobacco stems from 6 areas into 3 groups,namely Group 1(Hunan stems),Group 2(Yunnan and Henan stems) and Group 3(Fujian,Chongqing and Guizhou stems).3) The standard deviation of moisture content in stems by original grouping means was 1.15% after storing,while it was less than 0.35% when the stem was grouped and processed according to the recommended method.