Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Modeling And Experiment Of Solar Crop Dryer For Rural Application, Dawit Abay Tesfamariam, Mulu Bayray Kahsay, Meseret Tesfay Kahsay, Ftwi Yohaness Hagos

Ftwi Yohaness Hagos

An indirect passive convectional solar dryer consisting of a solar air heater and dryer chamber is designed, manufactured and tested for its performance. It plays a major role in reducing crop wastage and opens a way to food preservation. The area of the solar collector required to dry a batch of 10 kg of tomato within two days is calculated. The performance of the collector is improved through the use corrugated absorber to create turbulence for air flow and a highly insulating material to minimize heat losses. The thermal performance of the solar dryer is tested under the local weather …