## 2 Materials and Methods
### Combining the Results Obtained by MCDM Techniques with the Borda Rule  
The rankings made with 7 different MCDM methods were combined with the Borda rule. First, the borda value of each method was found with Equation (45). Then, these values were added up to find the total borda value of the options and, the final ranking was made. The results of these operations are shown in Table 19.  
Freeze Drying emerged as a suitable drying method in the collective evaluation of the rankings obtained with the applied MCDM techniques using the Borda rule. On the other hand, in Table 19, Shade Air Dried is second, and Oven-Dried (45 \({}^{\circ}\)C) is third. Fresh fruit gives fourth place and Microwave drying and Oven Drying at 60 \({}^{\circ}\)C fifth and sixth place, respectively. These rankings are quite compatible with the literature. [PERSON] et al. (2021) found that fruity ester compounds were significantly reduced in microwave drying, oven drying at 60 \({}^{\circ}\)C, and oven drying at 45 \({}^{\circ}\)C [14]. Microwave drying was determined to be the method that reduced the ester content the most. In contrast, shade-drying and freeze-drying methods were reported to preserve ester compounds better. Also, [PERSON] et al. (2023) suggest that drying at low temperatures for a long time should be preferred to drying at high temperatures for a short time in order to obtain dried strawberries with a fruitier taste [30]. Furthermore, it was determined in this study that aroma values were best preserved in freeze-drying. It is stated in the literature that drying processes at temperatures of 50 \({}^{\circ}\)C and above have negative effects on food quality parameters and can especially lead to the loss of components such as color, aroma, and phenolic substances. This situation may negatively affect the overall quality of foods [78]  
Furanone compounds were observed to increase especially in low-temperature drying (45 \({}^{\circ}\)C oven drying), shade drying, and freeze-drying processes. Furaneol was detected at low levels in samples obtained by oven drying at 60 \({}^{\circ}\)C but was not detected at all in the microwave drying method due to the high temperature. This was attributed to the fact that \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c} \hline
**Drying Strawberry Methods** & **Ranking** \\ \hline
**Fresh** & 4 \\
**Shade Air Dried** & 3 \\
**Microwave Dried** & 6 \\
**Oven Dried (60 \({}^{\circ}\)C)** & 5 \\
**Oven Dried (45 \({}^{\circ}\)C)** & 1 \\
**Freeze Dried** & 2 \\ \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 18: List of strawberry drying methods using the OWA technique. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c c c c c c c c c c} \hline Fresh & 1 & 5 & 4 & 2 & 3 & 3 & 3 & 3 & 4 & 2 & 2 & 4 & 4 & 2 & 21 & 4 \\ Shade-Air Dried & 3 & 3 & 2 & 4 & 2 & 4 & 1 & 5 & 2 & 4 & 4 & 2 & 3 & 3 & 25 & 2 \\ Microwave-Dried & 5 & 1 & 5 & 1 & 5 & 1 & 5 & 1 & 5 & 1 & 6 & 0 & 6 & 0 & 5 & 5 \\ Oven-Dried (60 \({}^{\circ}\)C) & 6 & 0 & 6 & 0 & 6 & 0 & 6 & 0 & 6 & 0 & 5 & 1 & 5 & 1 & 2 & 6 \\ Oven-Dried (45 \({}^{\circ}\)C) & 4 & 2 & 1 & 5 & 4 & 2 & 4 & 2 & 1 & 5 & 3 & 3 & 1 & 5 & 24 & 3 \\ Freeze-Dried & 2 & 4 & 3 & 3 & 1 & 5 & 2 & 4 & 3 & 3 & 1 & 5 & 2 & 4 & 28 & 1 \\ \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 19: Combining the results of MCDM techniques with the Borda rule. furaneol was not stable, depending on temperature and pH [52]. [PERSON] et al. (2007) stated that lactone levels increased significantly in samples dried by freeze and shade, and freeze drying gave the best results for terpene compounds [52]. These findings are consistent with the rankings obtained in this study. Graphics of the ranking results of MCDM and [PERSON]'s rule are shown in Figure 7.  
Although drying technologies are closely linked to the economy, employment, energy savings, and food safety in the food drying industry [79], this study does not address aspects such as the environmental impact and cost of drying methods within its scope. Instead, the evaluation focuses solely on the aroma values of dried strawberries.