Design And Performance Characteristics Of Palm Kernel Nuts Drier

Abstract

A cabinet drier with dimensions 0.82m x 0.45m x 0.52m, having four trays and capable of drying 4kg of palm kernel nuts per hour was constructed. A control circuit to regulate the temperature of the heating chamber was installed in the appropriate parts of the drier. Using electrical heating, hot air is produced and allowed to flow through the product in order to remove the moisture. The drier was heavily lagged to conserve heat. The electronic instrumentation section of the drier has a digital display unit that allows the temperature of the drying chamber to be read. This drier was found to work satisfactorily, achieving complete drying of the nuts within the temperature range of 80^oC to 100^oC under 60 minutes of its operation without discolouration of the nuts or the resultant extracted oil. The maximum production requirement was 40kg per day on the basis of an 8- hour shift. The drier is also suitable for drying several agricultural products under varying temperature condition.

Key words: control circuit, cabinet drier, agricultural products, temperature, digital display.

Nig. J. of Pure & Appl. Physics Vol.3 2004: 8-15