Heated air drying

Compared with traditional sun drying, heated

air drying or mechanical drying allows for suitable drying air conditions to
be set. In this method, drying can be carried out any time of the day or night.

Using mechanical dryers may also reduce the labor costs, especially if some
form of mechanical turning or stirring of grain is practiced, as in the case of
re-circulating dryers. Grain re-circulation allows to uniformly dry grains, and
the automatic drying air temperature control to maximize the drying rate
and at the same time reduce over-heating or over-drying. The following are
options for heated air drying:

Fixed-bed batch dryers usually have rectangular bins with plenum chamber
underneath (flat bed dryer, box dryer, inclined bed dryer) or circular bins
with central duct (Vietnamese low-cost dryer). 

Bed configuration of fixed bed batch dryers

The most common fixed bed dryers are flat bed dryers which have a very
simple design. Grain is laid out on a perforated screen, and dried by forcing
air from below. The air fan that provides the drying air is usually a simple
axial flow fan that is powered by a diesel engine or by an electric motor. A
kerosene burner or a biomass stove provides drying heat. The capacity of
the dryer varies from one to ten tons.

Generally the drying floor is flat although dryers with reclining sections (to
facilitate unloading) or vibrating sections (to facilitate stirring) exist as well.
The height of the layer is usually 40 cm. The most common smaller dryers
have a capacity of one to three tons per day with drying times of six to
twelve hours. For drying of paddy in tropical areas, an air temperature of
40−45ºC is normally used with a heater capable of raising the air
temperature 10−15ºC above ambient. An air velocity 0.15−0.25 m/s is
required and typical fan power requirements are 1.5−2.5 kW /ton of paddy.
The efficiency of these dryers as well as the head rice recovery is improved
by stirring the grain during drying.

Other fixed bed dryers have a cylindrical duct made out of porous materials
with a central duct for drying air delivery. These models save floor area and
small scale units can be made out of very cheap materials such as woven
bamboo mats thus keeping the dryer affordable for small farmers. However,
an inherent problem of this dryer type lies in its circular design because the
inner layers of the grain bulk contain less grain than the outer layers. Air
velocities and thus drying potential are therefore larger close to the center of
the dryer where the drying air enters the grain bulk and the air velocity
decreases on its radial path through the grain. At the outlet, the drying rate
which is already lower because of adsorbed water is further reduced by the
lower specific air volume. This leads to even higher moisture gradients
compared to flat bed dryers. Circular bin dryers made out of locally available
materials, however, offer very affordable solutions to farm level drying,
especially when they are used for ambient air drying with low temperatures
where the moisture gradient is minimized.

To reduce the moisture gradient that develops during drying and to eliminate
the need for mixing, some manufacturers have introduced devices for
reversing the airflow in some fixed bed dryer models. This reduces the
moisture gradient and thus improves the quality of the dried paddy but it
adds to costs. Compared to the more complicated re-circulating batch dryers
this is still a feasible solution where simple design is needed and operator
skills are low. Principle (left) and example of a mobile reversible-flow batch
dryer (right)
 Principle behind reversible-flow batch dryer

Mobile reversible-flow batch dryer

In general, mechanically dried grains will produce better quality rice

compared to traditional sun drying. It will lead to more uniform drying of
grain and higher milling yield and head rice recovery. 

Since rice quality is becoming more important to rice consumers, medium-

sized grain dryers have become a common sight throughout Asia. For
production of premium quality rice or seed, mechanical drying with heated
air dryers is highly recommended.

Re-circulating batch dryers have been used for a long time in developed
countries. In many Asian countries re-circulating batch dryers are
increasingly being used by the private sector for producing better quality
grain and for handling large amounts in the peak season safely.

However, the loading, unloading and circulation of grain create dust which
needs to be collected in a collection system. In addition, it is recommended
to pre-clean the grain prior to loading and drying. As with the flatbed dryer,
 re-circulating dryers come in a variety of capacities, from 2 tons (for seed
production stations) up to 20 tons (for cooperative drying stations).

Depending on the flow of the drying air relative to the flow of the grain re-
circulating batch dryers can be classified as cross flow ormixed flow re-
circulating batch dryers.

In cross flow dryers the grains are not mixed while they are passing the
drying section and being exposed to the hot drying air. This means that a
moisture gradient develops in the drying section of the dryer. In the
recirculation and tempering process this gradient is reduced because the wet
and dry grains are mixed while they are being conveyed and subsequently
moisture transfer happens from the wetter to the dryer grains. While this
process is not optimal it still produces much better quality than a fixed bed
dryer because the moisture gradients are much smaller.

Conventional Continuous Flow Dryer

Although not very common in Southeast Asia continuous flow dryers are
used by some larger milling enterprises that handle large volumes of wet
paddy. Conventional continuous flow dryers usually consist of either mixing
or non-mixing columnar dryers with different systems of airflow with respect
to the grain (see figure). 

 Cross flow dryers are of simple design. In the drying zone the grain
moves downwards between two perforated metal sheets while the air moves
horizontally through the grains. Since the grain is not mixed moisture
gradients develop across the bed. They are also less susceptible to clogging
than mixed flow dryers.
 In concurrent flow dryers the air moves in the same direction as the
grain. This has the advantage that the air with the highest drying potential is
in contact with the wettest grains. Higher air temperatures can be used for a
fast drying process. Drying is rapid in the upper layers and slower in the
lower layers, which suits the drying characteristics of paddy.
 In counter flow dryers the air moves upwards against the movement of
the grain. This system is very energy efficient since the drying air continues
to adsorb moisture on its way through the increasingly wet grain until the air
outlet.
 Mixed flow dryers produce the best quality grains because of the
continuous mixing effect. The inlet and outlet ducts can be placed in
alternating pattern so that both concurrent flow and counter flow of the air
can be achieved in one dryer.

A continuous flow dryer cannot be used as a stand alone machine but needs
to be integrated in a larger system consisting of the dryer, several tempering
bins and conveying equipment (Figure 12). It is not possible to dry the paddy
in a continuous flow dryer from typical MC content down to levels for safe
storage in one single pass. Typical drying MC reduction rates per pass are
around 2%. One pass lasts 15-30 minutes at around 70ºC drying air
temperature. Higher rates could be achieved by increasing either the drying
air temperature or the retention time but both would negatively affect grain
quality because of increased cracking. Continuous flow drying systems are
therefore operated as multi-pass systems where the grain is moved to
tempering bins for around 24 hours after each pass until the desired MC is
reached (see also Section 3.3.4 Tempering). Sometimes the tempering bins
are equipped with aeration facilities to cool down the grain with some
additional low-temperature drying effect. Actual residence time in the
continuous flow dryer in a multi pass system is 2-3 hours for a 10% reduction
of moisture and is thus below that of a re-circulating batch dryer.

Continuous flow dryer operation needs to be carefully planned and requires

good management in order to fully utilize the expensive equipment. In
addition it requires continuous input of wet grains at a steady rate. The small
scale farms, multitude of varieties, low labor and management skills and
high capital investment needs are some of the reasons why continuous flow
dryers are for the time being not feasible in most Asian countries.

Flash Dryer

Special continuous flow dryer types, which are used as first stage dryers in
two-stage drying systems, are the rotary drum dryers in the Philippines and
the fluidized bed dryers which were successfully commercialized in Thailand
in the nineties. Both types use extremely high temperatures (up to 110-
120°C) for rapid removal of the surface moisture and can only dry down to
18% MC without damaging the grains (see also "Two stage drying"). While
the rotary drum dryers were mainly disseminated through government
programs the fluidized bed dryers in Thailand were accepted by the private
sector and are well integrated in combination drying systems that include
either large scale in-store drying facilities with several hundred tons capacity
or mixed flow heated air dryers for second stage drying to storage MC.

The fluidized bed dryer consists of a drying chamber with an air speed of
around 2.3 m/s, a bed thickness of 10 cm in which the grain is exposed to
the drying air for 10-15 minutes. Capacities of commercial units range from
1-10 t/h. A diesel burner or a rice hull furnace is used as heat source and a
system for re-cycling 50-70% of the drying air is provided to improve energy
efficiency. Typically head rice yields are reported to be up to 5% reduced
compared to samples dried at ambient air while the effect on whiteness is
minimal.
 The following are general recommendations for using mechanical grain
dryers:

 When installing a dryer

Select the model carefully considering the technical requirements,
economical feasibility and the volumes of paddy to be dried.
 Get familiar with the operation of the dryer and try to understand the
drying process. Insist on proper training to be provided by the manufacturer.
 Before loading the dryer
Clean the grain by removing fines and green, immature grains and materials
other than grain. Fines reduce the airflow through rice causing increased
drying time and wet spots. Green, immature grains and straw extend drying
time and increased energy consumption.
 In the dryer
Do not mix dry with wet paddy. The drying air gains moisture as it passes
through the dryer and may cause the dry grains to fissure.
 Monitor the drying air temperature, especially when drying seeds, to
avoid heat stress that can cause cracking and to ensure the viability of the
seeds.
 Monitor the moisture content and stop the drying process at the
desired MC. Too high moisture content lead to qualitative losses and to
discounted prices for wet paddy. Too low MC results in monetary losses
because of unnecessary weight loss.

http://www.knowledgebank.irri.org/step-by-step-production/postharvest/drying/mechanical-drying-
systems/heated-air-drying#guidelines-on-using-dryers

ftp://ftp.ufv.br/dea/Disciplinas/Evandro/Eng671/Aulas/Aula06-2-grain-dryers.pdf

http://www.fao.org/docrep/015/i2433e/i2433e10.pdf
Often Overlooked, Always Critical: Grain
Drying & Handling
Doebler's Pennsylvania Hybrids, Inc.
1000 Commerce Park Drive, Suite #106
Williamsport, PA 17701
Farmers invest in land, seed, soil treatments, inputs,
equipment, technology and more in order to improve
their capabilities.

However, according to Dan Zippay, branch manager

of Custom Agri Systems in Beloit, Ohio, on-farm
storage and drying systems are often the last
upgrade farmers make.

“Farmers get extra ground. They get a bigger combine. What happens when
their drying system’s outdated, and they have this big combine sitting out in
the field waiting?” he says.

“It’s inefficient,” Dan continues. “We only have a certain amount of time in
the fall to get everything done. Farmers make improvements so they can fill
up their grain carts, wagons and semis faster. If their grain handling systems
aren’t faster, they’re not really accomplishing anything.”

That’s why on-farm grain drying and handling systems continue to evolve.
“We’ve got to speed up the process if we’re going to keep up,” he says.
Dan is also a dealer for Brock Manufacturing and his company sells grain
storage, drying and handling equipment. He works with farmers on creating
on-farm systems that meet their needs.

“Grain bins can be anywhere from 15 feet to 105 feet in diameter. They can
hold 1,000 bushels or 1 million bushels,” Dan says. “We can accommodate
any size farmers are looking for.”

“In 15 years I’ve never sold a bin that was too big,” he says.

Grain Drying is Key

Dan is able to offer customers a variety of options when it comes to grain

drying. He sees farmers buying one of three basic systems today.

“There’s the stirator, which is appropriate for a certain size of farm,” he says.
“When those farms grow in acres, they’ll move to the Shivvers system, which
is a continuous flow drying system. We can convert the in-bin stirator system
to the Shivvers system to make it more efficient.”

The farmers that outgrow the Shivvers system will move up to a larger
volume stand-alone dryer.

“Overall, we seem to be moving from stirators and other in-bin drying

techniques to more continuous flow in-bin drying and stand-alone dryers,”
Dan says. “The mix-flow drying concept is really starting to take hold east of
the Mississippi.”

Dan sees more farmers investing in mix-flow dryers and tower dryers,
depending on the size of the farming operation.

“The mix-flow dryers use a lot less fuel,” he says. “It’s a large dryer that uses
low heat and low airflow. The time it takes to dry the grain is much longer
than your standard, low-profile dryers, but its capacity is much greater.”

According to Dan, these dryers are growing in popularity because of the

quality of corn coming out of the dryers.

“The high quality is due to the slower drying,” he says. “When you have a
low-profile dryer that only holds 200 bushels and you’re giving it 200 or 210
degrees Fahrenheit, you’re putting that kernel through a lot of stress.”

“On the other hand, with the Grain Handler mix-flow grain dryer, doing the
opposite. The dryer drys a large volume of grain with a small amount of
airflow. The temperatures are going to be about the same, but due to the
increase in volume, it takes longer to get the moisture out of that kernel.”

Cooling and Storage

No matter what drying system farmers use, the grain must be cooled after
it’s dried, Dan cautions.

“In the fall and winter months the moisture migration inside a grain bin tends
to go towards the center of the bin. This is opposite in the spring and
summer, when the migration goes towards the outer edge of the bin and
causes grain to stick to the walls” Proper management would be to cool the
grain down to 40 degrees in the fall, do not freeze the grain, and slowly
warm in back up in the spring. Fans tend to be shut off after the spring warm
up occurs.”

Dan is a proponent of constantly monitoring the grain. “We’ve invested so

much money into the crop, we need to stay on top of it. We can’t just let it
go.”

“The rule of thumb is once a month you have to climb your bin. Look at the
grain and smell it. See what’s happening inside,” Dan says.

Of course, farmers must take safety precautions around grain bins. It’s
important to have one person on standby in case help is needed.
“Farmers need to check grain bin steps and ladders to make sure everything
is safe,” Dan says.

Ultimately, dryers and bins are tools in a farmer’s marketing program to help
ensure that the crop is high quality and in good condition when it’s time to
ship.

“I get calls every year from farmers who are having problems with corn
sticking to walls, crusted on top or plugging center wells,” Dan says. “These
are all telltale signs that proper steps were not taken to keep that grain in
good condition.”

“It’s an expensive lesson to learn,” he says. “It’s better for farmers to get
ahead of the situation and plan for the drying and storage they need.”

A bushel (abbreviation: bsh. or bu.) is an imperial and US customary unit of weight

or mass based upon an earlier measure of dry capacity. The old bushel was equal to 2
kennings (obsolete), 4 pecks or 8 gallons and was used mostly for agricultural products such as
wheat.

Yes, 45 pounds is a standard bushel of rice. In reality a bushel of rice can easily weigh as

little as 40 pounds or as much as 50 pounds depending on several factors such as grain type,
moisture level, degree of compaction and others.Jul 27, 2012
www.lsuagcenter.com/MCMS/RelatedFiles/%7BE823DE91.../Field-Notes72712.pdf
Sizing up grain dryers
Jodie Wehrspann | May 01, 1998

Some farmers are shifting from in-bin drying to continuous flow dryers to get more
capacity. The trade-off may be grain quality. Manufacturers are striving to give you
both. Dryer manufacturers are reporting a renaissance in sales of high-speed,
continuous flow dryers. Beard, Delux, Farm Fans, GSI, Mathews and QED all report
increases over previous years. In most cases, the increases are significant.

At Beard Industries, sales are up 50% from 1994. "Last year was a peak," says president
Bill Beard. "And (sales of continuous flow dryers) will continue to increase as a
percentage of new dryers."

Dryer buyers are either switching from drying in a bin or upgrading from a smaller
continuous flow dryer. Both types of buyers are looking for the same thing: more
capacity. The last surge of dryer sales was in the mid-1970s, and many existing drying
systems are 25 years old or older. Since that time, farms have gotten bigger. So has
harvesting equipment. Farmers need bigger dryers to keep up.

"It's not uncommon to be taking 16,000 bu./day out of the field," says Dr. Marvin
Paulsen, professor of agricultural engineering at the University of Illinois. "You have to
do something with that wet grain. So if you are harvesting at those kinds of rates, you
steadily move into a higher-temperature, higher-capacity dryer."

As an added push, farmers are entering fields earlier to finish on time. As a result, some
grain is being harvested wetter than ever before. Continuous flow dryers can handle
moisture levels as high as 25 and 30%. In-bin systems can't handle those moisture levels
as easily.
It's in the heat. Two things dry grain: air and heat. The higher the heat, the faster corn
dries. Obviously, you can dry grain faster in a dryer than you can in a bin because you
are using higher temperatures. How high depends on the dryer and the crop, but 180
degrees to 220 degreesF is typical for corn. Grain is dried in sections or columns to
expose all kernels to about the same level of heat. That distribution allows for higher air
flows and temperatures.

Compare that to bin drying, where grain is dried in mass anywhere from 6 to 12 ft. deep
in a bin, and heat moves in a front from the bottom up. Temperatures range from no
heat (natural air-drying) to around 160 degrees depending on the system. Higher
temperatures would scorch the bottom layer of grain closest to the heat source.

Continuous flow dryers are categorized according to the direction in which air flows in
relation to grain, according to Dr. Bill Wilcke, extension engineer, University of
Minnesota. There are four types: crossflow - air blows at a right angle across perforated
columns of grain; concurrent flow - air and grain move in the same direction down the
columns; counterflow - air blows up the columns opposite the grain; and mixed flow,
which incorporates a combination of these air flows.

The vast majority of continuous flow dryers sold in the Midwest are the crossflow type.
It also is the kind most grain elevators use. Now it's time to clear up a little confusion.
Descriptively, continuous flow dryers that fall under this category have many names.
They are called column-type, box, upright, self-contained, free-standing, portable or
stationary dryers. Their common denominator is that they dry grain in a column that is
completely separate from the grain bin or storage unit. Everyone agrees the proper term
to use, in most cases, is high-capacity, continuous flow dryers.

Beard, Delux, Farm Fans, GSI, Mathews, and QED, among others, make a crossflow
design. All work on basically the same principle. Gas-fired burners heat the air within
the dryer's plenum chamber. High-speed fans force the air at a right angle across
columns of grain about a foot thick. The columns reduce airflow resistance and allow for
more uniform distribution of heat within the grain as the grain moves through the dryer.
"That's one of the reasons you limit column thickness to 12 or 14 inches," Wilcke says.
"If the column gets too wide, the moisture and temperature variations across the column
get too big. The narrower the column, the smaller those differences are."

The point to keep in mind when buying a continuous flow dryer is that they aren't all the
same. You need to know what you are getting because each type has a different
minimum and maximum drying temperature range. Run it too hot and you'll damage
the grain. The kernel itself should never get much hotter than 140 degrees for milling.
Any hotter and it will lose starch extraction value or suffer stress cracks, which could
result in a higher number of broken corn and foreign materials (BCFM) at the elevator.
"With a concurrent flow dryer, you can turn the drying air temperature up to 300
degrees and the corn never gets that hot," Wilcke says. "But if you tried that with a
counterflow dryer, the kernel would reach about 300 degrees. So if 140 degrees is your
magic kernel temperature, that helps you figure out how high you can set the
temperature on that dryer."

The temperature you choose within that range will depend on your goals. For maximum
capacity, set it for the recommended maximum, Wilcke says. For maximum grain
quality, set it for the minimum within that range.

Manufacturers of continuous flow dryers have made major improvements to boost grain
quality while maintaining capacity in the past five to 10 years. These include: Automated
controls. With modern continuous flow dryers, loading and unloading are fully
automated. Once you set the drying temperature and target moisture level of the grain,
you can basically walk away. With older models, you had to periodically check moisture
content as grain was being dried and manually adjust the speed of the metering rolls
that control the flow rate through the dryer, according to Dr. Charles Hurburgh,
extension agricultural engineer, Iowa State University. "Now, moisture sensors
automatically estimate the moisture content, and a computer makes those adjustments
on the fly." The wetter the grain, the slower it moves through the dryer. The end result is
less baby-sitting and pinpoint accuracy of final moisture. Many modern dryers feature
this level of automation. For example, GSI's new software called Watchdog lets you
monitor moisture, temperature and dryer status from your office computer. Data are
transferred through your telephone line. If the dryer shuts down, an alert appears on
your computer screen.

Better airflows. Improved air flows allow for lower drying temperatures. Today's
crossflow dryers have bigger fans, larger drying chambers and "grain turners," which
turn grain as it moves down the column to distribute heat more uniformly. Before, when
grain fell straight down the column, the side closest to the heat source would get hotter
than the opposite side because the air comes from one direction across the column. "A
grain turner takes grain on the inside of the column closest to the flame and inverts it, or
puts it on the outside, and mixes it around," Hurburgh says. "That way you don't have
some grain on the inside getting very dry and some grain on the outside not so dry."

Better energy efficiency. Much of the heat generated by earlier-model dryers was lost to
the atmosphere. Modern designs recapture and recycle that exhaust to improve energy
efficiency and lower fuel costs.

Should you switch? The decision to switch from in-bin drying to a high-temperature
self-contained dryer basically comes down to capacity. How many bushels per year do
you need to dry?

"As far as a magic crossover number, there isn't any," says University of Illinois'
Paulsen. But he says on average, when farmers produce more than 100,000 bu./year,
they start to consider continuous flow dryers.
Where you farm can also dictate drying method. For instance, Paulsen says in his state
of Illinois, natural air and low-temperature in-bin drying is common. In Michigan,
almost all systems are continuous flow because of higher moisture and shorter growing
season. "Farmers in Iowa often are done harvesting before Michigan farmers have even
started," says Dr. Fred Bakker-Arkema, professor of agricultural engineering at
Michigan State University. "So we must turn it around much faster and at a higher
moisture content." As a rule, the further north you are, the more you rely on heated air
drying.

Another consideration is cost. Continuous flow dryers cost more than a drying bin. The
dryer itself may run as high as $100,000. To know whether you can justify it, divide the
total annual cost by the number of bushels per year you plan to dry, advises Minnesota's
Wilcke. That will give you a cost per bushel. Do the same for your current system for
comparison.

When buying a continuous flow dryer, you'll need to specify whether you want a heat-
and-cool or an all-heat model. The former not only dries the grain but cools it once it is
dried in a second chamber within the dryer. An all-heat unit dries only and requires that
you dump the grain hot into a grain bin with a perforated floor and a fan for cooling.
Heat-and-cool units cost more but are less hassle. All-heat units, although more work,
give you almost double the capacity because you are tying up less dryer time by
transferring the grain out of the dryer sooner to make room for more wet grain.

Alan Brutlag, a farmer near Wendell, MN, converted an old heat-and-cool Butler-Kan-
Sun dryer to an all-heat unit to increase drying capacity. He stopped the dryer from
cooling by tinning the inside of the cooling chamber. By adding a full dryer floor, a 12-hp
axial flow fan and power sweep, he converted a standard 12,000-bu. bin into a wet
holding bin. He now uses the dryer to dry corn down to 18 to 20% moisture, after which
he dumps it hot into a lineup of six 10,000-bu. bins with full floors and 10-hp axial flow
fans. There, he lets it steep at 125 degreesF for six to 12 hrs. Afterward, he turns on the
fans to cool it to outside air temperature. For every 10 degrees of cooling, he removes .25
pints of moisture for a total of 21/2 pints. Any moisture beyond that is removed by
natural air drying. "Because of combination drying, I am able to unload grain from the
dryer at 18% moisture instead of 15% and increase my capacity from 400 bu./hr. up to
1,000 bu./hr.," Brutlag says.

He had to add an oil cooling system to the gearbox to keep it from overheating. "At the
end of the season the corn is drier, and I finish off by using the wet holding bin to
natural air dry the last bushels of corn."

Depending on your current system, a continuous flow dryer might require additional
storage and handling equipment than what you're using now. Basically what you'll need
are a wet holding bin to hold grain awaiting drying, bins with false floors for cooling or
storage, and conveyors to transfer the grain to and away from the dryer. Bins previously
used for drying can be converted to storage or wet holding bins. Wilcke knows of
farmers who are converting 10,000-bu. storage bins for wet holding. "A few years ago,
people would have thought that size was ridiculous. But these days, I don't think that's
out of line."

Size to fit. To know what size continuous flow dryer you need, estimate how many
bushels per day you will harvest and how many hours you want to run the dryer in a
given day, says Richard Zinke, general sales manager with Mathews. For example, if you
are going to harvest 15,000 bu./day and you run the dryer 24 hrs./day, then divide the
15,000 by 24 which gives you a capacity of 625 bu./hr.

Most continuous flow dryers used on farms have capacities anywhere from 100 bu./hr.
up to 1,000 bu./hr., depending on initial moisture content. Some continuous flow dryers
can be stacked one on top of another to double or triple capacity.
The highest-capacity continuous flow dryers are called tower dryers. These dryers have
grain columns more than 30 ft. high to achieve the capacities required by commercial
elevators. As farms get bigger, farmers may need the same capacity. "A lot of farmers in
certain areas have crossed into that small commercial level on their farm," says Don
Nicol, vice president of drying systems, GSI. "So now we are seeing tower dryers sold on
farms."

Most manufacturers of continuous flow dryers make a tower dryer. GSI claims to make
the largest in the industry at 10,000 bu./hr. Some market them under different names.
For example, Farm Fans markets its tower dryers under the Zimmerman name, and
Mathews markets its tower dryers under the Kan-Sun name, formerly owned by Butler.

Tower manufacturers that before sold only to commercial elevators are now finding a
niche with large farms. Examples include Delux Manufacturing out of Kearney, NE,
which makes both stacked and tower continuous flow dryers, and QED Dryer Sales out
of Rockford, IL, maker of modular tower dryers (circle 224). "We fit well with the young
farmer who is operating a few thousand acres," says Steve Morreim, president of QED.
"Our dryers are modular so we can expand them in hours."

Steve Schultz, sales manager with Delux, says that farmers start to look at tower dryers
when the farm size approaches 10,000 acres and need drying capacities of 2,000 bu./hr.
and up. The size of your farmstead may also dictate need. "If you are filling with a leg
system and have limited ground space, a tower may be your only option," he says. "You
need to build up versus out."
http://www.farmindustrynews.com/sizing-grain-dryers

Overview of grain drying in China

Contents -  Previous - Next
Wang Hanbin
Section Chief, Grain Storage Division,
Grain Storage and Transportation 
Bureau,
Ministry of Commerce,
People's Republic of China

Abstract

There are many links in the grain postharvest chain, including threshing, cleaning,
drying, storage, transportation, and processing. Grain drying is one of the key links in
terms of minimising postharvest losses, since it directly affects safe storage,
transportation, and processing quality, as well as distribution.

Great losses to stored grain occur every year around the world. For instance, moulding
during storage and transportation, deterioration in quality and an increase in brokens
and cracked kernels can be attributed to delayed or improper drying.

China is one of the world's largest grainproducing and consuming countries. To

minimise grain postharvest losses, particularly in the case of wet grain, has always
been a key issue in the management of grain. The following introduction addresses
three aspects of the problem.

The geographic distribution of wet grain in China

China is a vast country, spanning thousands of kilometres from north to south.

Geographic and climatic conditions vary from place to place, and so do the varieties
of grain. This has resulted in a wide range of grain moisture contents as well as
postharvest technologies in China.

Wet grains are mainly maize and paddy, two major crops in China, with very small
quantities of soybean, rapeseed, and wheat. They are geographically distributed in the
following provinces, cities, and autonomous regions: Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning,
Inner Mongolia, Beijing, Hebei, Anhui, Xinjiang (Sinkiang), Jiangsu, Hubei, Jaingxi,
and Zhejiang.

Maize is produced mainly in the north of China, with high yields but longer maturing
periods. The weather is not favourable, with a short no-frost period, low temperatures
during the maize maturing period, and low hours of sunshine, which results in huge
amounts of wet grain after harvest.
When maize comes into the state grain depots, its moisture is normally as high as
2226%. In the years when frost comes earlier, it can be as high than 30%, and
sometimes over 40% in some places. Every year, the grain depots in the north receive
wet maize in very large quantifies.. To reduce the moisture content to a safe storage
level is a prime activity in the depots during the whole winter period.

Paddy is produced mainly in the south of China. Late-season paddy harvested there is
wet because of higher rainfall and relative humidities at harvest time.

Most paddy is harvested manually and sun dried in the field for one or two days after
harvest (depending on the weather), so the moisture content of wet paddy is not as
high as that of maize in the north. Normally, it is between 16 and 18%. In a bad year it
could be around 20% and even 24%, when drying becomes imperative before long-
term storage and transportation.

In terms of quantity, the amount of wet grain procured by the government is around
20 million tonnes, about one quarter of the total state procurement. This is made up of
about 15 million tonnes of maize, with the rest mainly paddy. The wet grain is more
concentrated in the north-east, where 70% of the total procurement is wet maize. In
recent years, grain output has increased markedly and so too has the amount of wet
grain.

Methods of grain drying

Generally speaking, grain drying can be classified into sun drying and mechanical
drying.

China is a large agricultural country at a low level of agricultural mechanisation.

particular, mechanical grain drying capacity cannot keep pace with the increase in
grain production. At present, only about 30% of wet grain in state depots is
mechanically dried; the rest has to be sun dried. All grain retained at farm level for
consumption by farmers is sun dried.

Sun Drying

As is well known, sun drying has greater requirements of labour and space, especially
in the case of large-scale and centralized treatment Although labour is relatively cheap
in China, the cost of commercial-scale sun drying is still very high.

In addition, sun drying depends very much on the weather, and takes more time. If
there are long spells of bad weather, there is a high risk of grain losses. Also, the
handling losses during sun drying are not insubstantial.
However, sun drying does have some advantages. There appears to be no appreciable
reduction in grain quality associated with the process, and grain can be kept fresh, of
good colour, and free of contaminants.

There are many ways of sun drying in China. The most popular method is to spread
wet grain on the ground, turning it from time to time to remove extra moisture.

In the north-east, farmers usually put maize cobs into hubs. Moisture is removed by
natural aeration during storage. Farmers also take measures before maize is harvested.
When it is in its waxy ripening stage, farmers tear the husks off the cobs for sun
drying while on the stalk. This method not only removes moisture but also promotes
maturity, thus increasing yield. Under the climatic conditions of the north-east, it
takes about 10 days to reduce maize moisture by 4%.

Clearly, the main disadvantages of sun drying are that it is more labour intensive and
takes longer. Some local governments give farmers incentives to encourage sun
drying at farm level so as to solve the problem of insufficient capacity in state depots.
This has not been successful to date.

Mechanical Drying

For mechanical drying, design and manufacture of grain dryers started in the late
1950s. However, early development was not rapid enough. In the late 1970s and early
1980s, successive bumper harvests created a large grain drying problem. Mechanical
means of grain drying have been developed more rapidly since then.

Most grain dryers are designed and manufactured by local Research and Design
Institutes and end users. There are three main types of grain dryers: tower dryers;
rotary drum dryers; and fluidised-bed dryers.

Tower dryers are very popular for maize drying in the north. They can be classified as
direct or indirect dryers. In the direct dryers, the heated gas is in direct contact with
the grain so giving better drying efficiency.. Anthracite coal is required as fuel to
minimise contamination.

Indirect dryers normally use heat exchangers. Since there is no contamination

possible, there are no special fuel requirements. However, the energy losses are high
during heat exchange.

The capacities of tower dryers using coal as fuel are around 10-20 tonnes per hour
with moisture removal of about 10% for each pass.
Rotary drum dryers and fluidised-bed dryers are popular in the south for paddy
drying, with capacities ranging from 5 to 15 tonnes per hour and moisture removal of
about 3%. They use mainly paddy husks and coal as fuels. Producergas is also used as
a heat resource for grain dryers in the south. It can provide stable heat and maintain
grain quality, but its use increases the cost of drying.

The grain dryers using solar energy, infrared radiation, and microwaves were tested in
the early 1980s, at an experimental level. The technical and economic data collected
were not promising for potential commercial utilization.

Apart from dryers, when we say mechanical drying, we should include mechanical
ventilation, which is simple in construction, and economic and reliable in operation.
Fans, ducts, controllers and suitable ambient air are the total requirements for a grain
ventilation system, with the aeration time controller as a key component. In some
cases, supplementary heating equipment is probably needed for reducing the relative
humidity of the ambient air and raising its temperature. Ventilation technology for wet
grain drying is now practiced in the both the north and the south of the country, with
good results.

In summary, mechanical drying has many advantages it is independent of the weather,

has low operating costs; and is suitable for fast, large-scale and centralised facilities.
However, good design and operations are very important, because grain is easily
damaged by over-drying.

Current Problems and Developments

At the moment, the major problem faced after harvest in China is a shortage of
mechanical drying capacity. The government each year has to make substantial inputs
of labour, materials, and money for sun drying in order to protect grain-particularly
maize in the north-from moulding or other kinds of damage during storage and
transportation,

Under the present management system, the state grain depots have to procure a huge
amount of wet maize within a short period after harvest. Although the temperature is
low and wet grain can be stored for a certain time without drying, the huge amount of
wet maize in depots waiting to be handled by a very small drying capacity is still a
great pressure on safe storage. It keeps all store keepers busy with grain drying
(mainly sun drying) throughout the winter.

In years when frosts are early, the problem is further exacerbated, with even greater
amounts of maze at moisture contents more than 10% over the standard. Depots have
to ask local government for help as the drying season is short. Roads, squares, other
public spaces, and even airport landing strips have been used to dry all wet maize to a
level safe for storage before the temperature rises in the spring.

High moisture paddy in the south represents the second biggest wet grain problem in
China. Its moisture content is lower than that of maize, but the ambient temperature in
the south is much higher than that in the north. Wet paddy therefore needs to be dried
as soon as possible. In addition, exposure to high temperatures awing uneven drying
can reduce paddy quality, leading to broken and cracked kernels during milling. It is
essential to increase mechanical drying capacity and develop drying technology to
solve these problems.

Nevertheless, the development is uneven in the north and south. Large capacity dryers
able to remove substantial amounts of moisture in each pass are urgently needed in the
north, while in the south, advanced drying technology that preserves paddy quality is
the top priority. Here, drying systems based on aeration would probably be more
suitable and effective. This would seem to be the best way to develop grain drying
policy at present.

China is eager to learn from other countries about postharvest technology in general
and grain drying in particular, including:

 new types of high efficiency grain dryers;

 elimination of contamination when coal, a common energy source in China, is
used as fuel;
 reducing heat consumption;
 automatic controller systems and computer simulation design methods;
 manufacturing technology, etc.

Efforts should also be made to develop new, high-yielding and early maturing
varieties of maize in order, for example, to reduce grain moisture content in the field
before harvest.

China is a developing country and, because of financial constraints, the government is

unable to tackle all problems immediately. However, there are a few important first
steps that could usefully be taken to overcome the grain drying problem:

 it would help greatly if farmers were to deliver dry or at least partly dried grain
to state procurement centres;
 price incentives or subsidies could be introduced to induce farmers to
undertake at least some drying on farm;
There are two factors that support this idea. Firstly, grain production in China is
decentralized and small scale at present. For this reason, on-farm drying may be easier
than centralised drying in state depots. Secondly, farmers have many traditional and
effective methods suited to small-scale grain production. No doubt they could do the
job well, as long as government policy is practical.

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