Development of Hot Air Solar Crop Drier with Perforated Absorber Plate and Double Glass Glazing

Abstract

The developed Hot Air Solar Crop Dryer (HASCD) with perforated plate and double glass glazing is an innovation in the drying of crop. Farmers encountered problems of drying crops after harvest which leads to great loss of crops. Hot air solar dryer with perforated plate and double glass glazing was developed in order to reduce waste encountered by the farmers. The HASCD was developed using ply wood, glass, aluminum sheet and plastics. The crop drying chamber with dimensions 37cm by 17cm contained an aluminum tray painted black to enhance absorption of heat. The developed HASCD recorded a maximum temperature of 91^oC between March to June 2021 in Azare town. The crops used for testing the dryer are Red Bell peppers (Tattase), Scotch bonnets peppers (Tarifu) and Bird’s Eye Chili peppers (Barkwano), which are cultivated in the area. It usually takes 8 to 10 days to dry these crops in an open air drying process but it took less than 5 days to dry the same crops using the developed HASCD. This result shows an improvement over an open air drying process because the drying period is shorter, the crops are neater and more nutritious for consumers since they were not exposed to dust, rodents and other environmental hazard. Moreover, the HASCD was developed using locally available materials which are cost effective and can be easily handled by local farmers.