Thin layer solar drying characteristics of silkworm pupae

Thin layer solar drying experiments of silkworm pupae using a solar tunnel dryer were conducted under the tropical weather conditions of Mahasarakham, Thailand. The dryer consisted of a transparent glass covered flat-plate collector and a drying tunnel connected in series to supply hot air directly into the drying tunnel using a blower. During the experiments, silkworm pupae were dried to the final moisture content of 0.15 kg water kg^?1 dry matter from 4.37 kg water kg^?1 dry matter in 373 min at the corresponding air flow rate of 0.32 kg s^?1. Ten different thin layer drying models were compared according to their coefficient of determination to estimate drying curves. The Midilli–Kucuk model precisely represents the solar tunnel drying behavior with the coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.9982. The maximum drying rate and effective moisture diffusivity were 0.6723 kg water kg^?1 dry matter h^?1 and 2.7696 × 10^?10 m² s^?1, respectively, on the drying air flow rate of 0.32 kg s^?1. A quality assessment shows that the lipid content of the dried silkworm pupae was not affected by the solar tunnel dryer. A slight decrease of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) was observed.     

Effects of Peeled and Unpeeled Garlic Cloves on the Changes of Drying Rate and Quality

Reducing moisture content as fast as possible, together with minimizing loss of quality, is important to food processing. To reach these objectives, experimental investigations were conducted to examine the effects of both peeled and unpeeled garlic cloves as well as operating parameters such as temperature and superficial velocity on the drying rate and quality of dried product. Peel resistance to moisture diffusion is considerably dominated and yields the longer drying time. Drying at high temperature shows the shrinkage of garlic clove to be lower than that at low temperature, whereas the product color is browner and the sizes of produced pores as revealed by scanning electron microscope are larger. The loss of volatile oil is insignificantly different among low- and high-temperature drying. The peel effect exhibits negative results on the product color, giving lower luminosity than the peeled sample, in particular at low temperature, because of longer drying time.     

Rapid Drying of Parboiled Paddy Using Hot Air Impinging Stream Dryer

A method for rapid drying of parboiled paddy via the use of an impinging stream dryer was proposed and assessed. The effects of the drying air temperature, number of drying cycles, as well as time of tempering between each drying cycle on the moisture reduction, head rice yield, and whiteness index of the dried parboiled paddy were studied. The drying experiments were carried out at drying air temperatures of 130, 150, and 170°C; inlet air velocity of 20 m/s; impinging distance of 5 cm; and paddy feed rate of 40 kg_{dry_paddy}/h. Parboiled paddy was dried for up to seven cycles. Between each drying cycle the parboiled paddy was tempered for a period of either 0 (no tempering), 15, 30, 60, or 120 min. After impinging stream drying, paddy was ventilated by ambient air flow until its moisture content reached 16% (db). Moisture reduction of the paddy was noted to depend on both the impinging stream drying temperature and tempering time. Drying at a high temperature along with tempering for a suitable period of time could maintain the head rice yield of the paddy at a level similar to that of the reference parboiled paddy. To avoid discoloration and low head rice yield, parboiled paddy should not be dried at a temperature higher than 150°C and should be tempered for at least 30 min.     

A Superheated-Steam Fluidized-Bed Dryer for Parboiled Rice: Testing of a Pilot-Scale and Mathematical Model Development

This article describes the testing of a pilot-scale superheated-steam fluidized-bed dryer for parboiled rice along with development of a mathematical model for predicting the changes in temperature of steam and moisture content of parboiled rice during drying. Based on the obtained results, it was found that the superficial velocity of steam from 1.3 to 1.5 times of the minimum fluidization velocity had no significant effect on the drying rates of rice. The energy consumption for reducing the moisture content of paddy from 0.43 to 0.22 kg/kg dry basis was approximately 7.2 MJ/kg water evaporated. Drying temperature caused the appreciable change of parboiled rice qualities as characterized by water adsorption, whiteness and pasting viscosities, white belly, and hardness. Soaking paddy at a temperature of 70°C for 7-8 h before drying was sufficiently enough for producing parboiled rice, with no white belly. The gelatinization of starch during drying resulted in higher head rice yield of the product as compared to that of raw paddy.     

STUDY OF LONGAN FLESH DRYING

The objectives of this research were to study the characteristics and quality of longan flesh drying and to develop the models for drying simulations. Finite difference method was applied to solve the drying kinetic equations. Three alternative diffusion models were developed by modifying the Arrhenius factor and/or the energy of activation as a function of moisture content. The results using effective diffusion coefficients obtained from each model were compared. Desorption isotherms were also developed by fitting experimental results to various well-known models. The development and simulation of mathematical drying model of a cabinet dryer were also studied. The effects of drying air temperature and specific air flow rate on specific energy consumption were described. Additionally, the effect of drying air temperature on product quality was investigated by experiment.     

Techno-economical evaluation of a rice husk ash (RHA) based sand–cement block for reducing solar conduction heat gain to a building

This paper reports on the performance of a rice husk ash (RHA) based sand–cement block. Its performance is compared with that of a standard commercial clay brick. The RHA-cement block reduces solar heat gain in buildings and the comparisons include an evaluation of room temperature, solar conduction heat transfer and economics. An appraisal of the two was conducted using two small rooms (floor area of 5.75 m²). One of the rooms was constructed using the RHA based sand–cement block wall; the other, which served as the reference, used a commercial clay brick wall. Experiments were performed throughout a period of one summer month (March) in Thailand. The results showed that the RHA based sand–cement block reduced solar heat transfer by 46 W. An economic analysis indicates that the payback period of the RHA block in tandem with a 1 ton, split-type air conditioner depends on the indoor set-point temperature. The payback period is 4.08 years when the indoor set-point temperature of 26 °C is taken.     

Effect of temperature and relative humidity on yellowing rate of paddy

The effects of temperature and relative humidity (or water activity) in storage chambers on yellowing rate of paddy were investigated and then an empirical equation for predicting the yellowing rate was developed. Paddy was conditioned using saturated salt solutions at relative humidities ranging from 0.80 to 0.95 and temperatures of 35, 45, 55, 60 and 65°C. The yellowing rate was found to follow the zero order kinetics. The yellowing constant value (k) increased exponentially with temperature and increased linearly with water activity. The magnitude of apparent activation energy varied from 130–145 kJ/mol. A predictive equation for determining yellowing rate was ln k=−δa_w−/T+(γa_w)/T where a_w was water activity (valid from 0.80 to 0.95), T was absolute temperature (valid from 308 to 338 K) and , δ, and γ were constants. The results of variance analysis showed that temperature, water activity and their interaction significantly influenced the yellowing rate of paddy.     

Influences of coal size and coal-feeding location in co-firing with rice husks on performance of a short-combustion-chamber fluidized-bed combustor (SFBC)

This study examined the combustion characteristics and performance of rice husks co-fired with coal in a short-combustion-chamber fluidized-bed combustor (SFBC) with a 225 kW_th capacity. Rice husks were the main fuel, and coal was a supplementary fuel in the experiments. The effects of coal size (< 5 mm and 5-10 mm) and coal-feed location (above or below a recirculating ring) on combustion performance were investigated. Various co-combustion tests of rice husks with coal were performed, with different thermal percentages (10, 15, 20, and 25%) of coal. The results were compared to firing 100% rice husks alone. With the assistance of a stirring blade and a recirculating ring, good combustion was feasible without using any inert materials mixed into the bed.Combustion efficiency in an excess of 98% was readily achievable. CO and SO₂ emissions (at 6% O₂) were in the range 64-104 and 10-22 ppm, respectively, while NO_x emissions were in the range of 208-281 ppm. Although the CO and SO₂ emissions were acceptable, combustion of 100% rice husks and co-combustion with < 20% coal failed to comply with Thai NO_x emission limits. Therefore, to minimize NO_x emissions (208-244 ppm, at 6% O₂), coal of both sizes was introduced below the recirculating ring. The results demonstrated that the thermal percentage of coal in the fuel mixture should be 20-25%.     

DRYING CHARACTERISTICS OF CORN IN FLUIDIZED BED DRYER

ABSTRACT

A batch fluidized bed dryer was carried out for corn drying. Drying characteristics of corn were investigated The experimental results indicated that moisture transfer inside a corn kernel was controlled by internal diffusion by the following conditions : inlet hot air temperatures of 120 - 200 °C, superficial air velocities of 2.2- 4 m/s, bed depths of 4 - 12 cm, fraction of air recycled of 0.5 -0.9 and initial moisture content of corn of 43 % dry-basis. The Wang and Sing equation could describe in accordance with the results. Inlet hot air temperature and specific air flow rate were independent variables for drying constant model in the Wang and Singh equation.     

Development of Cross-Flow Fluidized Bed Paddy Dryer

ABSTRACT

A cross-flow fluidized bed paddy dryer with a capacily of 200 kgh was designed, fabricated and tested. Experimental results showed that final moisture content of paddy should not be lower than 23 % dry-basis if quality is to be maintained. Drying air temperature was keot constant at 115°C according to the recommendation of previous work. Results obtained from the mathematical model developed in this study indicatedthat optimum operating parameters should be as follows : air speed of 2.3 m/s, bed thickness of 10 cm and fraction of air recycled of 80 %. At this condition, energy consumption was close to the minimum while drying capacity was near the maximum. A prototype fluidized bed dryer with a capacity of 1 t/h was designed, fabricated and installed with the collaboration of a private company. The unit has been used for almost the whole past harvesting season in 1994 at a paddy merchant sile with preference compared to conventional column continuous dryers. More than 300 tons of paddy were dried without any problems.