## 3 Results and Discussion
### Physicochemical Attributes of Spray-Dried Cashew Particles  
The average diameter of spray-dried cashew particles varied from 15.1 \(\upmu\)m to 29.5 \(\upmu\)m (Table 1), which falls within a typical range for atomized particles (10-100 \(\upmu\)m) and allows them to be classified as microparticles [42; 43]. Overall, particles obtained with a higher concentration of GA (groups C3 and C4, Table 1) showed a higher average diameter, which agrees with the hypothesis that feed solutions with higher GA concentrations generate coarse droplets during spray drying, leading to lower solids recovery and a higher average particle diameter [20; 41]. Moreover, at higher GA concentrations (25% \(w/v\), groups C3 and C4), the inlet temperature significantly (\(p<0.05\)) affected particle average diameter (Table 1). At higher temperatures, the faster drying process may lead to immediate particle formation and avoid particle shrinkage [44], which may have also contributed to group C4 (GA: 25% \(w/v\), IT: 150\({}^{\circ}\)C) showing the highest average diameter (29.5 \(\pm\) 1.5 \(\upmu\)m). Spray-dried cashew particles had similar (\(p>0.05\)) and low \(a_{w}\), typical for spray-dried samples [38; 45], and within the range considered as safe against microbial deterioration (below 0.6) [46; 47]. As expected, all treatments showed a similar pH (\(p>0.05\)), within the acidic range (4.2-4.3; Table 1), and the results are comparable to those of a previous report on freeze-dried cashew powders [48]. Powder density influences products' processing, packaging, and transportation. A lower density was observed for spray-dried powders with a higher drying carrier concentration (Table 1). A similar trend was reported by [PERSON] et al. [49] and [PERSON] [50] and might be related to reduced adherence between particles. The density of spray-dried cashew particles was in the same range as that of spray-dried elderberry particles obtained from elderberry juice with tapioca starch (1.415 \(\pm\) 0.007 g cm\({}^{3}\)) [17], but was higher than that reported by [PERSON] et al. [49] for fiber-rich mix fruit particles obtained from pineapple, carambola, and watermelon mixed with maltodextrin (0.291-0.456 g cm\({}^{3}\)). Remarkable water solubility was registered for all spray-dried cashew particles (\(>\)94%, \(p>0.05\)) due to the inherently high solubility of GA [20; 51]. High solubility is a desirable attribute, because it directly influences the acceptability of food ingredients and their performance in food formulations [43]. The results obtained here are better than those reported for spray-dried blackberry juice with an arrowroot starch and GA mixture (58.39-79.37%) [44], spray-dried citron (_Citrus media_ L. var. _sarcodactylis_ Swingle) extract with GA, modified starch, whey protein, and maltodextrin carriers (70.09-91.26%) [43], and spray-dried elderberry particles obtained from elderberry juice and pomace extract using tapioca starch as a drying carrier (49.4-51.1%) [17]. Low hygroscopicity is a desirable feature for powdered matrices because hygroscopic materials require special packaging and handling conditions to avoid the excessive absorption of moisture, which can lead to quality deterioration, agglomeration, and caking [52].