An experimental study on hybrid (solar-biomass) drying of agricultural products | |
| Author | Bhatta, Chandika Prasad |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.ET-99-27 |
| Subject(s) | Solar dryers Vegetables--Drying |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering. School of Environment Resources and Development |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | This study presents the work done on a renewable (solar-biomass) hybrid dryer used to dry mushroom and pepper, and the details of the work done on the design, fabrication and experimentation of a setup to study the drying characteristics of these two agricultural products. The drying characteristics of the products were studied by supplying hot air to the drying chamber at ce11ain specified conditions after passing it tlu·ough successive units, namely, blower, humidifying tank and heating chamber. Samples to be dried were placed on a tray and were allowed to dry into the drying chamber. A thermostat controlled the temperature of air in the humidifier and air heater. The moisture contents at various times were obtained by weighing the sample during drying until it was completely dried. Experiments were conducted in the temperature range 45-60°C, 50-70% relative humidity and at a constant air flow of 66 m3 /hr. The effects of temperature and relative humidity on drying of the products have been presented for these two products. Page's model was used to describe the drying behavior and the results show that this model describes the drying characteristic for muslu·oom (good) and for pepper satisfactorily). General equations were developed to find the Page's drying constants for these products. Experimental studies on solar-biomass hybrid drying of ear-lobe muslu·oom and green pepper were also conducted. The tests were conducted both for hybrid (solarbiomass) system and only by solar energy. The drying time reduction was about 25-36% by hybrid system and 20-30% by solar energy only compared to open sun drying. Energy balance of the collector and dryer were done and the collector efficiency in case of hybrid system was found to be about 37%. The drying efficiency was about 23% in case of muslu·oom and varied between 6-27% depending on the initial moisture content of pepper. The drying time predicted using the model equations for muslu·oom was compared with experimentally obtained results. |
| Year | 1999 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development |
| Department | Department of Energy and Climate Change (Former title: Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Change (DEECC)) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Energy Technology (ET) |
| Chairperson(s) | Kumar, Sivanappan |
| Examination Committee(s) | Bhattacharya, Sribas C.;Hoang-Luong Pham ; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | NORAD; |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1999 |