Determination of some physical properties of African oil bean kernel relevant for design of the processing machine

Abstract

This study investigated some physical properties of African oil bean kernel such as size, sphericity, surface area, bulk density, true  density,  weight, porosity, volume, angle of repose and the coefficient of friction on various material surfaces. Standard methods from the  literature were adopted in carrying out the experiment. The properties were investigated at moisture content of 14.63% wet basis.  The results obtained showed that the average values of major, intermediate and minor diameters of the kernels were 47.34, 30.13 and  9.99 mm, respectively. The volume, sphericity, porosity, surface area, bulk and true densities were obtained as 23.34cm³ , 0.51, 45.23 %,  18.45 cm² , 0.64g/cm³ and 0.85g/cm³ , respectively. The coefficient of friction of the kernels on wood, glass and metal were gotten as  0.88, 0.72, and 0.77, respectively while the angle of repose is 14.57^o . The data obtained will be useful in the design of postharvest  machines for African oil bean kernel.