Electronic Theses and Dissertation

RINGKASAN


Daun murbei (Morus alba L.) yang memiliki kandungan metabolit sekunder dan bioaktif penting bagi kesehatan, salah satunya sebagai bahan teh herbal. Daun murbei diketahui memiliki manfaat dalam menurunkan gula darah, mengatasi batuk, hipertensi, serta bersifat antioksidan. Namun, pengolahan daun murbei menjadi produk herbal memerlukan proses pengeringan yang tepat, karena suhu pengeringan sangat mempengaruhi kadar air, warna, serta kualitas senyawa bioaktif. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini difokuskan untuk mengetahui bagaimana pengaruh variasi suhu pengeringan terhadap karakteristik simplisia dan bubuk daun murbei, sehingga dapat diperoleh kondisi optimal yang menghasilkan produk berkualitas tinggi. Tujuan dari penelitian ini yaitu untuk menentukan karakteristik pengeringan daun murbei berdasarkan suhu pengeringan dan menentukan karakteristik fisik simplisia dan bubuk daun murbei berdasarkan suhu pengeringan.
Adapun penelitian ini dilakukan di Laboratorium Teknik Pasca Panen Fakultas Pertanian Universitas Syiah Kuala pada bulan Mei – Juli 2025. Daun murbei berasal dari fakultas pertanian. Daun yang diambil sebanyak 100 gr selama 9 hari dipanen pada waktu pagi hari. Pengeringan dilakukan menggunakan alat pengering kabinet (tipe rak) dengan 3 variasi suhu yaitu 40°C,50°C dan 60°C dengan 3 ulangan. Adapun beberapa parameter utama dalam pengeringan yaitu suhu pengeringan, waktu pengeringan, kecepatan aliran udara, kelembaban relatif udara, jenis dan ketebalan bahan. Analisa data yang dihitung yaitu laju pengeringan, rasio kadar air, rendemen pengeringan, penurunan kadar air, kadar air,rasio rehidrasi, perubahan warna, densitas curah, kadar air akhir.
Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa proses pengeringan daun murbei dipengaruhi oleh variasi suhu, di mana kadar air awal sebesar 60–70% dapat diturunkan hingga 4–5% sesuai standar simplisia herbal. Laju pengeringan tertinggi terjadi pada suhu 60°C, namun suhu menengah 40–50°C lebih mampu menjaga rendemen (32,9–42,5%) dan rasio rehidrasi (1,80–2,13%) agar bubuk tetap berkualitas. Analisis rasio kadar air (MR) memperlihatkan penurunan konsisten hingga mendekati nol, dengan laju tercepat pada suhu 60°C meskipun berisiko menurunkan mutu simplisia. Sementara itu, densitas curah bubuk daun murbei relatif stabil pada semua perlakuan, yaitu 0,485 g/cm³ (40°C), 0,471 g/cm³ (50°C), dan 0,500 g/cm³ (60°C), yang menunjukkan kualitas fisik baik untuk penyimpanan. Secara keseluruhan, suhu 50°C direkomendasikan sebagai kondisi optimum karena mampu menyeimbangkan kecepatan pengeringan, rendemen, rasio rehidrasi, warna, serta densitas curah bubuk.

SUMMARY Mulberry leaves (Morus alba L.), which contain secondary metabolites and bioactive compounds, are important for health, including as an ingredient in herbal tea. Mulberry leaves are known to lower blood sugar, treat coughs, and treat hypertension, and have antioxidant properties. However, processing mulberry leaves into herbal products requires a precise drying process, as drying temperature significantly affects water content, color, and the quality of bioactive compounds. Therefore, this study focused on determining the effect of varying drying temperatures on the characteristics of mulberry leaf crude drugs and powder, thus achieving optimal conditions for producing high-quality products. The objectives of this study were to determine the drying characteristics of mulberry leaves based on drying temperature and to determine the physical characteristics of mulberry leaf crude drugs and powder based on drying temperature. This research was conducted in the Post-Harvest Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Syiah Kuala University, from May to July 2025. Mulberry leaves were sourced from the Faculty of Agriculture. 100 grams of leaves were collected over a nine-day period and harvested in the morning. Drying was performed using a cabinet dryer (rack type) with three temperature variations: 40°C, 50°C, and 60°C, with three replications. The main drying parameters include drying temperature, drying time, air flow rate, relative humidity, and material type and thickness. The data analyzed included drying rate, moisture content ratio, drying yield, moisture loss, moisture content, rehydration ratio, color change, bulk density, and final moisture content. The results of this study indicate that the mulberry leaf drying process is influenced by temperature variations, where the initial moisture content of 60–70% can be reduced to 4–5%, according to herbal medicine standards. The highest drying rate occurred at 60°C, but an intermediate temperature of 40–50°C was more effective in maintaining the yield (32.9–42.5%) and rehydration ratio (1.80–2.13%) to maintain powder quality. Analysis of the moisture content ratio (MR) showed a consistent decrease to near zero, with the fastest rate at 60°C despite the risk of reducing the quality of the simplex. Meanwhile, the bulk density of mulberry leaf powder was relatively stable in all treatments, namely 0.485 g/cm³ (40°C), 0.471 g/cm³ (50°C), and 0.500 g/cm³ (60°C), indicating good physical quality for storage. Overall, a temperature of 50°C is recommended as the optimum condition because it is able to balance the drying speed, yield, rehydration ratio, color, and bulk density of the powder.