Design and Development of a Retractable Solar

Dryer
Dr S Balaji
Suganesh K Manimaran
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Department of Mechanical Engineering Department of Mechanical Engineering
Kumaraguru College of Technology
Kumaraguru College of Technology Kumaraguru College of Technology
Coimbatore
Coimbatore Coimbatore
[email protected]
[email protected] [email protected]

Aadhil Sharif
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Kumaraguru College of Technology
Coimbatore
[email protected]

Abstract— Solar dryers are used to eliminate the moisture over an average 3000–3200 h per year, delivering about 2000
content from crops, vegetables, and fruits. Solar drying kWh/m2 -year of solar radiation on the horizontal surface.
improves the quality of the products in terms of color, flavor
and texture and eliminates microbial growth, prevents insect Perishable food produce dehydrated in such a manner
infestation and contamination by foreign matter. The top prolongs shelf life while preserving color, nutritional value,
surface of the dryer is covered by transparent single and
and aroma at the same time.[5]
multilayered sheets. These sheets are UV stabilized to facilitate
maximum transmissivity and the inside surface is colored black
to ensure maximum solar radiation is trapped within the Solar drying has several advantages as solar energy is non-
structure. Since the structure is insulated, the constant polluting, free, abundant renewable energy source. But
temperature and ventilation allow a consistent drying process several practical difficulties arise, and it should be overcome.
which results in better product quality and higher prices. The The intensity of incident radiation is not constant throughout
air is ventilated through the ventilation outlets at the top of the the day; therefore, heat storage is needed to store the solar
box. As the inside air gets warm, it rises by the natural energy at its peak value. The auxiliary energy source is
circulation process and removes the moisture from the required after sunset and at the time of bad weather. Also,
agricultural produce that are placed in trays inside the solar solar radiation has a very low energy density, which requires
dryer. This paper presents a cost efficient and space saving
concept of Solar Tunnel Dryer design. The design includes a
the large surface area to collect solar radiation (collectors).
retractable tent structure with hinges that facilitate Because of these things, investment costs are notably larger
retractability and a UV-Stabilized sheet is used to cover the [1]
structure. Key problems that need to be solved are presented in
this paper including the ventilation that is needed, how optimal Solar dryers are devices which make use of solar energy to
convection is achieved and whether it provides similar/better dry distinct kinds of edible produce. The technology is
performance to commercially available Solar Dryers. Finally, simple as it involves converting light to heat and
we discuss whether the total cost of manufacturing undercuts subsequently trapping the heat within an insulated enclosure
commercially available dryers of similar capacity. to dry agricultural produce. Solar dryers are usually classified
according to the mode of air flow into natural convection and
Keywords— Solar Tunnel Dryer, UV Stabilized Sheets, Solar
Radiation. forced convection. Solar dryers reduce energy costs and
economically speed up drying which would be beneficial to
Introduction final quality. Compared to oil or gas heated dryers, solar
drying facilities are economical for small holders [2]
In India, approximately 80 per cent of farmers are poor,
marginal producers. Among the challenges they face are Within the Solar Dryer enclosure, Drying air flows through
fluctuating market prices. Farmers are not able to preserve the product by natural circulation. Rate of drying is uniform
their food for more than 1 to 2 weeks because of electricity in all the trays due to heating of the air by solar energy in
costs, poor infrastructure, and lack of funding to invest in between the trays [3]
storage facilities. Being a sub-tropical country, solar drying is
one of the various post-harvest techniques which helps in The constant temperature and ventilation allow a consistent
preserving and storage. Drying under hostile climate drying process which results in better product quality and
conditions leads to severe losses in the quantity and quality higher prices. Solar dryers not only make the drying faster, it
of the dried product. also prevents dust, pathogens, bird droppings, and
interference of external agents that affect the quality of the
Solar dryers are now being increasingly used since they are a food. Edible items such as fruits, vegetables, spices and so on
better and more energy efficient option. Sun shines in India once dried in solar can be stored for longer period, increases
in monetary value, and can later be sold for a high selling
price. Solar drying will only be successful, when it shows II. DESIGN
tangible benefits in comparison to existing drying methods
such as open drying. They allow farmers to transform their A natural convection solar tunnel drying system, designed
harvest into storable and tradable goods while also reducing and developed for drying agricultural produce. It is
post-harvest losses. consisted of a tunnel shaped metallic frame structure
covered with UV-stabilized semitransparent polyethylene
Solar dryers help to provide more heat than the temperature
sheet of 200 micron thickness and had a base area of 10 × 6
in the atmosphere. In a solar dryer, air enters the drying
ft for drying approx. 150 kgs of produce can be dried per
chamber through the process of natural convection or
batch.
through an external source like fan, pump, suction device,
etc. The warm air absorbs the moisture and dries the produce,
The orientation of solar tunnel dryer is in east-west direction
and then the moisture laden air is exhausted. The energy
for maximum incidence of solar radiation. The structural
requirement for drying different products can be determined
components of solar tunnel dryer include ultraviolet
from the initial and final moisture content of each product
stabilized polythene film, and drying trays, an exhaust fan of
[4]. Products have different drying rates and maximum
20W power rating and having volume flow rate 3.5 m3
allowable temperatures. Heat and moisture transfer removal
min−1 is provided at the upper end of the tunnel for
rate depends on air velocity and temperature of the
occasional removal of moist air to maintain humidity at a
circulating drying air [4]. Air gets heated up as it passes
preset level inside the tunnel.
through the chamber and then partially cools as it absorbs
moisture from the food product placed in the chamber and
The exhaust fan operation is automatic to maintain average
the humid air is removed by an exhaust fan or chimney.
relative humidity of the inside air between 30 and 40 per
cent . The moisture and humidity levels are regulated by a
I. MATHEMATICAL DESIGN Humidity-Temperature controller with maximum and
minimum presets applied.
A theoretical design was calculated with 105 kgs of Coconut.
Fresh Coconut contains a moisture content of 50-55% wb
(wet basis) and after ideal drying, the yield needs to have a
moisture content less than 5% wb (wet basis).

The Total moisture to be removed with this amount of

coconut is approximately 50.4 kg (Specific heat of Coconut
Cd = 2.28kJ/kg) [6]. The total energy required to dry (Q)
coconut is 8835.1 kJ. A steady temperature of 50–75°C will
be maintained depending on the type and moisture content of
the produce to be dried [4].

The internal ventilation is handled by a 12W exhaust fan Fig 1- Final Assembly of Solar Tunnel Dryer
with a flow velocity of 3.5 m3 min-1. The Moisture-
Temperature controller will have presets set at a minimum
temperature of 45°C which will turn the fan off and at a This is a modular design to help in storage and space saving.
maximum preset of 75°C which will turn it back on. UV Stabilized polyethylene sheet as cover designed. The
polyethylene sheet is of 200-micron thickness. The
dimensions of the design 10 x 6 x 8 ft with a total floor area
In Coimbatore, the hot season lasts for 3 months, from March of 60 sq ft.
to May, with an average daily temperature above 93°F/33°C.
The hottest month of the year in Coimbatore is April, with an The tunnel consists of three frames connected by steel cross-
average high of 95°F/35°C and low of 75°F/23°C. The cool link hinges so it can retract in the horizontal plane. Each of
season lasts for 3 months, from October to January, with an these frame members are hollow, the semi-circular section
average daily high temperature below 86°F/30°C. The slots into each of the hollow members. The total height is
coldest month of the year in Coimbatore is December, with 8ft, length is 6ft. The frame member diameter is 40mm with
an average low of 68°F/20°C and high of 84°F/28°C. [7] an internal thickness of 4mm.

Solar Energy required/hr of drying is around 879 kJ/hr after

factoring in Total energy required (Q).

The drying time required is estimated to be 11 hours to

obtain desired yield with a moisture content of less than 5-7
%. The moisture measurement will be consolidated based on
final gross weight of the dried produce.
 III. DISCUSSION

Commercially available Solar Tunnel Dryers usually use

active convection and the cost of setting one is about INR
25,000 to 60,000 for a capacity of 50-80 kgs. The losses
incurred due to unavailability of such technology to small
scale farmers means that a lot of produce is wasted and there
isn’t any value for the farmers.

This proposed design uses natural convection and has

Fig 3 - Frame
double the capacity of similarly priced Solar Dryers while
also providing the accessibility and can be assembled with
The entire structure is fixed to the ground with the help of
locally available materials with ease.
circular stakes. A total of 6 stakes will be present. The
height of each stake is 380mm with a shaft diameter of
During peak solar radiation during the day, the performance
20mm and a base radius of 80mm. These stakes will help the
is ideal for drying but it is at a disadvantage after Sunset.
entire structure to stay in place and not blow over in case of
There needs to be a solution to maintain and store the
high winds Perforated sheet trays are to be used for drying.
incident solar energy to sustain the efficiency for a few
hours after sunset. Solar energy is not dense, so a large area
is required to collect enough energy to facilitate the drying
process.

The salient features of this design are,

 It’s retractability means it can be stored easily and

will not take up much space.
 The metallic frame structure of the tunnel dryer
was covered with ultraviolet stabilized transparent
polyethylene sheet of at least 200-micron thickness.
Fig 4- Stake  It has long life and allows minimal radiation to
escape.
 It is a modular walk-in type of tunnel design.
Dimensions of the tray are 800 x 400 x 5 mm. There will be
3 trays per rack. A total of 5 racks to be placed so a total of REFERENCES
3 x 5 = 15 trays. The tray’s thickness is 5mm. It’s
dimensions are 800 x 400 x 5 mm. Each tray has a load
[1] Abhay Lingayat, Chandramohan V.P., V.R.K. Raju,
capacity of 7 kg. “Design, Development and Performance of Indirect
Type Solar Dryer for Banana Drying”, International
Conference on Recent Advancement in Air
Conditioning and Refrigeration, RAAR 2016

[2] EL- Amin Omda Mohamed Akoy, Mohamed Ayoub

Ismail, El-Fadil Adam Ahmed and W. Luecke, “Design
and Construction of A Solar Dryer for Mango Slices”
Journal of Food Engineering Volume 59, Issues 2–3,
September 2003, Pages 259-266

[3] Parm Pal Singh, Sukhmeet Singh, S.S. Dhaliwal,

“Multi-shelf domestic solar dryer”, Energy Conversion
and Management 47 (2006) 1799–1815.

[4] M. S. Seveda, “Design and Development of Walk-In

Fig 4- Tray and Rack Assembly Type Hemicylindrical Solar Tunnel Dryer for Industrial
Use,” International Scholarly Research Network ISRN
Renewable Energy Volume 2012, Article ID 890820, 9
pages
There are five racks that will be placed inside for drying
produce, each of these racks has a height of 1200mm and a
[5] Dilip R. Pangavhane, R.L. Sawhney, P.N. Sarsavadia,
breadth of 800mm. These have a sliding mechanism so the “Design, development and performance testing of a new
trays can slot in. The trays are perforated to facilitate natural convection solar dryer”, D.R. Pangavhane et al. /
convection allow for the draining of matter also known as Energy 27 (2002) 579–590
leachate so the produce can dry evenly.

[6] www.engineeringtoolbox.com/specific-heat-capacity-
food-d_295.html
[7] https://weatherspark.com/