Pengaruh Penambahan Kalsium Karbida pada Pengeringan Tembakau Besuki Voor-oogst (BVO)

Abstract

The conventional post-harvest drying process of Besuki Voor-Oogst (BVO) tobacco relies heavily on direct sunlight, making it highly vulnerable to quality degradation caused by unpredictable weather conditions. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of adding calcium carbide (CaC2) as an acetylene gas source to accelerate the drying rate and stimulate leaf color changes in a stable manner. An experimental method was conducted in the Laboratory of Agricultural Technology Faculty, University of Jember, comparing three dosage treatments of calcium carbide: control (0 g), 400 g, and 800 g inside greenhouse structures. Physical quality parameters were measured using a Sartorius Moisture Analyzer for moisture content, while color change dynamics were analyzed through the Euclidean Distance method based on RGB pixel intensity alongside automated quality grading via the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm with a Radial Basis Function (RBF) kernel. The results indicated that calcium carbide intervention bound environmental moisture and released acetylene gas, which stimulated leaf cellular respiration. The 800 g dosage successfully minimized nighttime hygroscopic effects, yielding the lowest final moisture content (11.05%), followed by the 400 g treatment (12.02%) and control (13.16%) on day 13. The highest daily drying rate was recorded by the 400 g treatment at 5.38%/day. Color analysis revealed that the 800 g treatment triggered the most drastic color change with a Euclidean Distance value of 27.4701 on Day 2 and achieved the most stable golden-brown maturity at the end of drying. The SVM RBF model successfully classified quality levels with a high total accuracy of 93.75%. In conclusion, the application of calcium carbide is proven effective in accelerating the drying process and optimizing the visual quality of BVO tobacco without damaging its internal properties.