DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF A GABLE-ROOF SOLAR DRYER FOR RED

PEPPER (CHILLI)

BY

YUSUF, Zainab Omowumi

16/30GA091

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURAL AND BIOSYSTEMS ENGINEERING,

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY,
UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN, ILORIN

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF

BACHELOR OF ENGINEERING (B.ENG) DEGREE IN AGRICULTURAL AND
BIOSYSTEMS ENGINEERING

SUPERVISED BY: DR K. O. YUSUF

NOVEMBER, 2022
 APPROVAL

This project report has been read and approved as meeting the requirement of the

Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering in the faculty of Engineering

and Technology, the University of Ilorin, for the award of Bachelor of Engineering

Degree in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (B.Eng. Agricultural and

Biosystems).

________________________ ___________________
Dr. K.O. YUSUF DATE
(Project supervisor)

________________________ ___________________
Dr. M.O IYANDA DATE
(Head of the department)

________________________ ___________________
DATE
External Examiner

ii
 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that I carried out the work reported in this write up is my own work

towards the B.Eng. under the supervision of Dr.K.O. Yusuf. I solemnly declare that to the

best of my knowledge, no part of this report has been submitted here or elsewhere in a

previous application for the award of a degree. All sources of knowledge used here have

been duly acknowledged.

__________________________
YUSUF, Zainab Omowumi
16\30GA091

iii
 DEDICATION

I dedicate this project to Almighty God who in his infinite mercy has made this work a

success, to my parents Mr. and Mrs. T. A. Yusuf for their unending support throughout

the project work, and also to my friends and colleagues for their advises and support.

iv
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

My profound gratitude goes to Almighty God for the successful completion of this work.

I am grateful to the Head of the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

in person of Dr. K. O. Yusuf, my level adviser Dr. M. O. Iyanda, other lecturers,

Technologists, Technicians and non-teaching staff of the department.

I thank my ever-approachable project supervisor Dr. K. O. Yusuf, for his good

supervision and motivation during the course of the project. I also acknowledge the effort

of my fellow students in the department for their contribution towards the success of this

project.

To my personal person Ibrahim, my darling Hajara for pushing me forward and my

special friends who contributed immensely to the success of this research Opeyemi,

Uthman, and many others, I cannot list you all, you all are darlings. I really appreciate

your voluntary support throughout this journey.

Finally, I remain indebted to my parents, Mr. & Mrs. T.A Yusuf for their love and

support in all aspects. Thank you for being there for me. I feel obliged to my siblings,

Habibat, Islamiyat, Maryam and Taofiq Yusuf. Love you all.

v
 ABSTRACT

Using the energy of the sun to dry food has always been a widely used food preservation

technique in this part of the world, but unfortunately the method practiced in rural areas

has many drawbacks. Yes, and one of them is the poor quality of the food. Much research

has been done to develop improved and more efficient drying methods, but unfortunately

not much has been done in this area. A solar dryer was designed, fabricated, and

evaluated for drying of chilli pepper at University of Ilorin, Department of Agricultural

and Biosystems Engineering. It was observed that on an average 48.5% of higher

temperature was obtained in the solar dryer over the ambient temperature. A total drying

time of 24h (3 sunny days) was required for pepper drying in the solar dryer to reduce the

moisture content from 90% (w.b) to 10.1% (w.b) compared to that of 36h for the open

sun drying to obtain the same level of moisture contents resulting in a net saving of about

30% of drying time for the solar dryer in comparison to the open sun drying. It is

recommended that weather data must be readily available to users of solar products to

maximize system efficiency and effectiveness. Such information could guide local

farmers when to dry and when not to dry their produce and there is also room for

improvement for the dryer to dry products at night. And the decreased rate of efficiency

to a large extent on cloudy days.

vi
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
APPROVAL ii

DECLARATION iii

DEDICATION iv

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT v

ABSTRACT vi

LIST OF FIGURES ix

LIST OF TABLES x

CHAPTER ONE 1

INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background to the Study 1

1.2 Statement of the Problem 2

1.3 Aim and Objectives 2

1.4 Benefit/ Justification of Study 3

1.5 Scope and Limitation of Study 3

CHAPTER TWO 4

LITERATURE REVIEW 4

2.1 Principle of Drying 4

2.2 Factors Affecting Solar Drying 8

2.3 Classifications of Solar Dryer 12

2.4 Review of Past Works 17

vii
CHAPTER THREE 19

MATERIALS AND METHOD 19

3.1 Description of the Solar Dryer 19

3.2 Design Considerations 20

3.3 Material Selection 21

3.4 Principle of operation 26

3.5 Construction 26

3.6 Bill of Engineering Materials Evaluation (BEME) 32

CHAPTER FOUR 33

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 33

4.1 Experimental Procedure 33

4.2 The Performance Evaluation of the Dryer 33

CHAPTER FIVE 46

CONCLUSION 46

RECOMMENDATION 47

REFERENCES 48

viii
 LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 2.1: Poultry birds feeding on maize during Open sun drying
practice 5
Figure 2.2: Classification of solar dryer 13
Figure 2.3: Direct solar dryers 15
Figure 2.4: Indirect type solar dryer 16
Figure 3.1: Base frame of the solar dryer 24
Figure 3.2: Completed view of the solar dryer 25
Figure 3.3: Top view of the dryer with the roof top attached to it 30
Figure 3.4 Front view of the solar dryer 30
Figure 3.5: Closed isometric view of the solar dryer with dimensions 31
Figure 3.6: Open isometric view of the solar dryer 31
Figure 4.1: Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative humidity
in first day of drying stage 36
Figure 4.2: Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative
humidity in second day of drying stage 37
Figure 4.3: Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative humidity
in third day of drying stage 38
Figure 4.4: Opened front view of solar dryer during drying of chilli
pepper (first day) 39
Figure 4.5: Closed view of the solar dryer during drying 40
Figure 4.6: Control sample (first day) 41
Figure 4.7: Pepper after drying in the solar dryer (third day) 42
Figure 4.8: Control sample after drying (third day) 43
Figure 4.9: Variation of moisture content and drying rate with time 44
Figure 4.10: Collector efficiency of solar dryer with time for drying pepper 45

ix
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1: Proposed Solar Dryer Parameters 27

Table 3.2: Quotation of the materials used for design and fabrication 32

Table 4.1: Effect of drying temperature on pepper using solar dryer 35

x
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Drying is the basic process of dehydrating foods until the moisture content is insufficient

to sustain microbial development. Drying removes the water required for bacteria and

yeasts to thrive, extending the shelf life. Drying is considered the best locally available

module for the preservation of agricultural products. Agricultural products are dried to

prevent the growth of microorganisms and to allow them to be stored for a longer time.

Drying reduces storage space, reduces weight, makes agricultural products easier to

transport, and ensures that they are available throughout the year. The drying food

preservation method is simple to implement, extremely safe, and suitable for a wide

range of foods [meats, fruits, and vegetables](Etim, Eke, and Simonyan, 2020).

The majority of the population in developing countries engages in farming practices.

Small farmers cultivate almost 80% of total food production. These farmers dry their

food using traditional methods (open sun drying) because the energy required in this

process is free, renewable, non-polluting, and available in most areas, open sun drying is

still the most popular and oldest technique of preserving agricultural produce. However,

this method of drying has several disadvantages, including contamination issues, uneven

drying, and unregulated moisture content in finished products, all of which degrade

product quality(Bharadwaz, 2020).

1
However, various researchers have found ways of improving upon this ancient method of

drying in the form of the solar dryer. Solar energy remains a viable and economical

means of preservation of Agricultural products.

The solar dryer is an improved form of sun-drying in which the drying is accomplished in

a closed structure under relatively controlled conditions. The solar dryer still harnesses

the sun’s energy but utilizes it more efficiently resulting in higher-quality final products.

Solar dryer with proper design offers the advantage of higher drying rates, which lowers

relative humidity and causes the air to travel faster through the dryer. The faster drying

time also reduces the risk of spoilage, improves the quality of the product and increases

output(Abdulrahman, Ayodeji, and Saleh, 2017).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The main problem that comes with this concept is the non-uniform availability of solar

radiation throughout the day. However, in modern world, different parameters are now

being taken into consideration during its manufacturing. By considering all factors, the

objective of this study is to develop a gable-roof solar dryer in which short life

agricultural products are dried with uniform solar radiation.

1.3 Aim and Objectives

The aim of this study is to develop a gable-roof solar dryer in which agricultural products

are dried with uniform solar radiation.

The specific objectives of this study are to:

2
 i. Design and fabricate a gable-roof solar dryer for drying chilli pepper.

ii. Assess the performance of this design of solar dryer from a constructed

prototype.

iii. Obtain experimental data that can be used in the future development of the

dryer.

1.4 Benefit/ Justification of Study

Due to the advent of technology in agriculture, the use of solar dryers has increased

globally. Therefore, in order to tap into the numerous advantages of solar drying. There is

a need to fully be in control of the parameters such as temperature, relative humidity and

solar radiation with the intention that the dryer becomes a more efficient method of

drying agricultural products with reduced drying time and cost of drying operation.

1.5 Scope and Limitation of Study

This scope of the study is limited to the initial developing and testing phase of the solar

dryer prototype. Performance assessment of the dryer is also limited to the tropics.

3
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Principle of Drying

Drying is the phase of the post-harvest system during which the product is rapidly dried

until it reaches the "safe-moisture" level. This process aims to lower the moisture content

to guarantee conditions favourable for storage or further processing of the product.

Drying permits a reduction of losses during storage from causes such as premature and

unseasonable germination of the grain, and proliferation of insects (Gunathilake,

Senanayaka, Adiletta, and Senadeera, 2018).

There are various types of drying; however, this study concentrates on thermal drying

using the sun’s power. Drying is usually done for three main purposes; easier

transportation, storage and also as a food preparation process. The main function of the

sun’s energy is to heat the air surrounding the food and the food itself. The relative

humidity of the heated air surrounding the food during the drying process increases in

absorptivity and hence its ability to absorb more moisture. It then carries with it, the

moisture that has migrated to the surface of the food as a result of an increased

temperature. This cycle continues when new dry air takes the place of the hot humid one

and eventually renders the food less moist (drier). Solar thermal drying has been

categorized into two main groups; open sun drying and solar drying.

4
2.1.1 Open Sun Drying

Open sun drying is the means of drying where the food product is laid out in the open air

to have direct exposure to the sun. This is a very simple method of drying and is the most

adopted drying method in rural areas in Nigeria. During drying, solar radiation directly

from the sun’s incident rays warms the immediate environment of the crop and its

surface. This causes the evaporation of moisture from the product into the atmosphere.

Unfortunately, not all the incident rays are converted to the latent heat of vaporization.

Some are reflected from the surface, carried away by wind and some are lost through

conduction to the ground surface. Traditionally in Nigeria, agricultural products are

usually laid on any flat surface such as raised wooden tables, tarred roads, concrete slabs

etc. A typical example can be seen in Figure 2.1.

Figure 2.1: Poultry birds feeding on maize during Open sun drying practice
(Sevada, Rathore, and Kumar, 2011).

5
The figure shows grains being dried in the open air on the ground surface. The main

advantage of sun drying is the fact that it requires less capital and little to no skill.

However, this type of drying has lots of disadvantages, some of which are the easy

contamination of produce by dust and volatile chemicals from the tar (in cases where they

are dried on tarred roads). This makes the product very unhealthy to consume. It also

leads to a longer drying time since the sun’s radiations are not efficiently utilized in the

drying process. In addition to the drawbacks mentioned above, products exposed directly

to the atmosphere are usually intermittently humidified by rain or dew, increasing the

humidity content of the product and therefore results in longer drying times Because of

the roads away from their homes, when it starts to rain most of the time, rural residents

are unable to get back in time to collect produce from the streets. The final quality of the

product is therefore very low due to the presence of contamination and sludge from

foreign matter in the air (Sevada et al., 2011).

2.1.2 Solar Drying

Solar drying is the drying of the product in a closed structure where the temperature of

the air surrounding the product is usually higher than the ambient temperature of the

dryer. This is an excellent means of increasing the quality of the final dried product,

reducing post-harvest losses, and generally shortening drying times compared to open-

sun drying (Zobaa and Bansal, 2011).

6
The energy requirements for drying different products in a solar dryer depend on the type

of dryer, the type of product being dried, and the climate usually determined from the

initial and final moisture content of each product. Different types of food crops have

different drying speeds and maximum allowable temperatures. In many cases, a slight

increase in temperature is sufficient to achieve adequate drying conditions (Zobaa and

Bansal, 2011).

When working with solar dryers, it makes sense to examine his two important properties

of the dryer before use. drying speed and drying efficiency. These indices provide an

overall assessment of the dryer's performance. A dryer's drying efficiency can be

estimated using Equation 2-1. It can be used to effectively compare and use different

types of solar dryers. Factors that are said to affect drying efficiency are basically: (Green

and Schwarz, 2001):

i. Factors about the crop like the size, type of crop, the moisture content etc.

ii. Factors relating to the peculiar characteristics of the dryer in question.

iii. Factors relating to the environmental conditions such as the climate.

The drying efficiency (De) is given by: (2.1)

Where:

= Drying efficiency

7
Drying rate is defined as the rate at which water is removed from the material. The

shorter the drying speed, the better. Drying rate (Dr) affects final product quality (Azam,

2008). Usually determined by the formula:

(2.2).

(Sevada and Rathore, 2007) emphasized that the drying rate is greatly influenced by

several key climatic factors such as temperature, relative humidity, sunshine hours,

available solar radiation, wind speed, frequency and duration of rain showers during the

drying period. However, other factors that have some impact on the drying process

include the particle size of the product being dried, the type of sun dryer used, the initial

moisture content of the crop, the air flow rate, and the absorbency of the crop. (Mohanraj

and Chandrasekar, 2009).

2.2 Factors Affecting Solar Drying

2.2.1 Temperature

Temperature has been defined as one of the main factors affecting the drying process,

especially the drying rate (Sevada et al., 2011). Solar radiation received by the solar dryer

is converted into heat, increasing the temperature of the air in the drying chamber. This

increase in temperature of the air, in turn, heats the crop surface which causes the

moisture in the crop to migrate to the surface and is vaporized. It is then carried away

8
through vents holes. Generally, the higher the temperature in the chamber, the faster the

drying rate. However, some plants have a maximum temperature at which they can dry,

above which might lead to their deterioration. High temperatures in the drying chamber

are effective only if they are relatively higher than the ambient temperature of the dryer.

Temperature is often measured using a thermometer.

2.2.2 Relative Humidity

Relative humidity is defined as "the ratio between the amount of water vapor in the air at

a given temperature and the maximum amount of air at the same temperature". The

tendency of crops to dry out depends on the ratio of the moisture content of the crop to

the moisture content of the surrounding air. If the ambient air has a low relative humidity,

the drier ambient air can absorb moisture that migrates from the crop. Therefore, the

lower the relative humidity (RH) entering the dryer, the faster it will dry and vice versa

usually measured with a hygrometer.

2.2.3 Moisture Content

Most produce that requires drying contains some moisture when fresh. The presence of

this moisture, also known as moisture, can lead to deterioration and thus make the

product unsafe to store. Most foods have a moisture content in the range of 20-90%, and

different types of products have different levels of moisture that are safe for storage

(Green and Schwarz, 2001). The moisture content of the product being dried directly

9
affects drying time. The amount of moisture in the product determines the type of solar

dryer you choose.

The moisture content of food is determined by weighing it first before drying it in an

oven at approximately 100 °C for 24 hours. The final mass of the oven-dried product is

acceptable if the mass remains constant (in the oven) for some time after the

measurement.

Moisture content can be determined on a wet or dry basis as indicated in Equation 2- 3

and Equation 2- 4 below:

Moisture Content (dry basis), (2.3)

Moisture Content (wet basis), (2.4)

The final mass of water lost can then be determined by:

(2.5)

Where:

= Initial moisture content on a wet basis before drying (%)

= Final moisture content on a wet basis after drying (%)

= Moisture content on dry basis (%)

10
 = Moisture content on wet basis (%)

= Initial mass before drying (g)

= Final mass after drying (g)

2.2.4 Air Mass Flow Rate

The properties of the air entering and exiting the drying chamber of the dryer are

important, as is the heat with which the product is dried. Airflow through a dryer is

generally a measure of the amount of air that has passed through the dryer over a period

of time. A commonly measured quantity is mass (kg). Air mass flow rate is therefore the

air mass passing through the dryer in unit time. A higher mass flow rate, which means

better airflow, increases the drying efficiency of the dryer.

2.2.5 Solar Irradiance

Solar irradiance can be described as the rate at which solar energy reaches a unit area on

Earth'(Stine and Geyer, 2001). It consists of three components; direct normal, indirect

and reflected solar irradiance. The component that is directly incident on the surface

normal and without being scattered or redirected by the atmosphere is called direct

normal irradiance and is usually measured by a pyrheliometer. Indirect irradiance is the

irradiance that is scattered by the atmosphere before being received on a surface. This

component can only be utilised by flat plate collectors and some low type concentrators

(Stine and Geyer, 2001). A part of the irradiance reflected from the ground surface can be

11
received by the inclined surface, and this part is called reflected irradiance. However, for

horizontal surfaces, the reflected irradiance is typically zero.

All these components of global solar irradiance determine the total amount of energy

received at the surface of the collector and can be measured with a pyranometer. It

depends on geographic location, climatic conditions, sky clarity, sun position, and days of

the year. Higher readings can be recorded on sunny days than on cloudy days or at sunset.

The more solar radiation available, the higher the temperature and the faster the drying

rate.

2.2.6 Solar Collector Efficiency

1. Heat gained by drying air

Heat gained by air in the solar tunnel dryer was calculated by using the formula,

(2.6)

2. Heat received by the collector

The heat received by the collector was calculated using the formula,

(2.7)

3. Solar collector efficiency

(2.8)

2.3 Classifications of Solar Dryer

Various types of solar dryers have been developed over the past decades to reduce post-

harvest losses and improve product quality. However, only a few types have been used or

12
commercialized beyond large-scale demonstration projects (Müller et al., 2012).

Agricultural solar dryers can be categorized by their size, system design, and how they

use solar energy. Solar dryers are divided into two main groups according to the type of

airflow through the dryer: natural circulation dryers (passive dryers) and forced

circulation dryers (active dryers). However, below these main groups are other

subcategories, defined according to whether the items to be dried are directly or indirectly

exposed to solar radiation by direct sun drying, indirect sun drying, mixed-mode sun

drying. A diagram is shown in Figure 2.2.

Figure 2.2: Classification of solar dryer

(Phadke, Walke, and Kriplani, 2015).

13
2.3.1 Based on Mode of Air Flow

2.3.1.1Passive Solar Dryer

In passive solar dryers, the air is circulated by natural convection. Direct passive solar

dryers (natural convection), such as cabinet and greenhouse dryers, have a simple and

inexpensive construction. Solar-heated air circulates agricultural materials by buoyancy

or pneumatic pressure, or a combination of both (Tiwari, Singh, Singh, and Maio, 2016).

During drying, part of the sun's radiation is reflected to the surroundings, the rest is

transferred to the cabinet and absorbed by the dried product.

2.3.1.2 Active Solar Dryers

Active solar dryers are suitable for large-scale applications where fans force hot air to

circulate. Active dryers are commonly used for drying high-moisture products (Sevada et

al., 2011). Active dryers have a ventilation system to circulate heated air in the drying

chamber or from the solar panel to the drying chamber. Fans or blowers are driven by

electricity that can be harvested from photovoltaic (PV) panels or the grid (Tiwari et al.,

2016). In the active mode of the greenhouse dryer, an exhaust fan is provided for air

movement. Active dryers have been reported to be more effective than passive dryers for

crops with high water content, such as papaya, kiwi, cabbage, and cauliflower (Chua and

Chou, 2003).

14
2.3.2 Based on Exposure to Solar Radiation

2.3.2.1 Direct Solar Dryers

Direct drying mode usually consists of a drying chamber covered with a transparent

material. These dryers use transparent covers to reduce heat loss and protect products

from rain and dust. Acting as glazing, this transparent material allows the sun's rays to

heat the chamber, raising the temperature of the air and the drying crops. The main

drawback of this type of dryer is the inability to control the temperature of the crops as

the crops directly absorb the radiation. This can cause some plants that are sensitive to

sunlight to lose some of their nutrients.

Figure 2.3: Direct solar dryers(Odhiambo, 2015)

15
2.3.2.2 Indirect Solar Dryer

In indirect mode dryers, crops are placed in an opaque closed chamber and protected

from direct sunlight. Therefore, the only heat transfer mode for drying is convection.

Incident radiation is absorbed by another surface, converted to heat, and transmitted by

convection into the drying chamber, heating the crop contained in the opaque chamber.

This type of drying is commonly used on some vegetables and herbs, or other types of

foods that are sensitive to colour or degrade when exposed to direct sunlight, especially

foods containing beta-carotene such as spinach and coriander suitable for indirect models

over direct mode dryers.

Direct mode drying speed and final crop quality is highly dependent on crop temperature,

but setup is fairly easy and relatively inexpensive, making this type a good choice for

both small and large-scale producers attractive.

Figure 2.4: Indirect type solar dryer(Odhiambo, 2015).

16
2.3.2.3Mixed-mode Solar Dryer

Also known as a multipurpose dryer, this natural convection system consists of a solar

flat panel air heater, flexible connectors, reducer with water box, drying chamber and

chimney.

A chimney mounted at the top of the drying chamber creates the airflow needed to pass

the crops. Crops are dried both in direct sunlight and indirectly heated air. Drying

temperature and humidity constant are the most important variables in controlling drying

speed in this type of dryer. Compared to sun drying, direct and indirect sun dryers, mixed

mode dryers are the best of the three due to their highest drying rate. The system offers a

good drying efficiency of 21-24% and can use 6-8% energy to dry products to a moisture

content of 13% at ambient temperature (25°C)(Ayua et al., 2017).

2.4 Review of Past Works

There have been several designs of passive solar dryers, some more complex than others

but one characteristic that stands out for the passive solar dryer is the low cost, simplicity

and low maintenance associated with it. It does not require mechanical parts such as fans

or blowers, so there is no additional cost to procure alternative energy sources to run the

mechanical parts. However, most of them are used on a domestic scale as they have a

limited loading rate.

(Janjai, Khamvongsa, and Bala, 2007) designed a PV-ventilated parabolic-shaped

greenhouse dryer for drying chilli, banana, longan, and green tea. In this system, daytime

17
temperatures during the dry season ranged from 60 to 65 °C. The drying time for 100–

150 kg of chillies was significantly reduced compared to open-air sun drying. Moreover,

the PBP for drying chilli was approximated at 3.4 years.

18
 CHAPTER THREE

MATERIALS AND METHOD

3.1 Description of the Solar Dryer

A gable-roof solar dryer is a direct mode passive solar dryer that utilizes the natural

convection principles. The dryer is constructed with locally available materials and is air

tight in order to achieve the aim of drying. The dryer consists of the solar collector

section, the drying chamber and the ventilator.

3.1.1 Solar Collector Section

This section is a rectangular box like structure framed with galvanised pipes and

insulated with polyurethane board at the base. The board is painted black to minimise

heat loss and retain heat energy in the system. The top cover was constructed with a

polyethylene sheet. The material is transparent made to allow the collection of sun rays. It

also consists of the inlet vent which allows air flow into the system

3.1.2 The drying chamber

This section houses other components of the dryer which include the perforated drying

trays where the products are placed in a single layer and the dryer doors which allow easy

loading and offloading of the products. The cabinet structure was framed with galvanised

pipe. Drying trays were placed in the drying chamber and consisted of wire mesh and

angle steel, with a fairly open structure to allow the passage of drying air through the

19
product. There were two perforated trays. The food items to be dried were spread evenly

over the trays for drying

3.1.3 The ventilator

This section is attached to the cabinet and is mainly to aid air flow out of the system. This

was constructed with net and an extended roof at the top to prevent case of rain water.

Too high ventilation lowers the highest achievable temperature within the solar dryer,

while too low ventilation allows high temperatures but results in poor moisture removal

which in turn stifles drying.

3.2 Design Considerations

In order to develop an efficient passive solar dryer, the followings were considered:

i. the geographical location of the experiment site;

ii. the size of the dryers;

iii. availability of the local materials used for the fabrication to reduce cost of

production;

iv. durability of the selected materials;

v. type of insulating material and adequate coating material used to insulate the sides

and base of the dryer to ensure minimum or no loss of heat.

 Temperature: The minimum temperature for dehydrating food is 35°C and the

maximum temperature is 60°C. Temperatures above 45°C are considered average

20
 and normal for drying fruits, vegetables, roots and tubers, seeds of crops, etc. T0

was 60°C and the dryer air inlet temperature or ambient temperature was T1 =

35°C (approximate outdoor temperature).

 Efficiency: This is defined as the ratio of product useful output to product input.

 Air Gap: For passive solar dryers in hot climates, a 10 cm gap is recommended

for vents (intake) and air passages.

 Plate and Flat Collector: plate cover thickness was proposed to be 2-4 m. A 2.8 m

thick polyethylene film was used in this work. It was also proposed to make the

sheet thickness 7.5mm. A polyurethane sheet with a thickness of 7.5 mm was

used here.

 Dimensions – The design of solar food dryers is recommended to achieve

constant air exchange and a spacious drying chamber. The drying chamber design

is therefore as spacious as possible with average dimensions of 90x60x90. Air

passage (air outlet) from the 90 x 10 cm cabinet.

 Dryer Pan – Mesh (metal) is selected as a dryer screen or tray to aid air flow

within the drying chamber. Two trays were made of metal mesh. The dimensions

of the tray are 40 x 60 cm.

3.3 Material Selection

Materials were selected for the components of the solar dryer based on a number of

considerations, among which are strength, toughness, size etc.

21
3.3.1 Framing Materials

The materials used in framing the gable-roof solar dryer were sourced in Ilorin and they

include:

i. Galvanised pipes

ii. Angle bar

iii. Nails0

iv. Bolts

v. Screws.

Galvanised steel was selected due to its strength, reliability, resistant to corrosion, low

cost and independency on weather condition. Angle bar was selected due to its light

weight, strength and availability

3.3.2 Cladding materials

The cladding material selected for the roof and sidewalls of the solar dryer is

polyethylene film. The choice of polyethylene film over other cladding materials was due

to the optical properties, availability and ability to screen out harmful ultraviolet

radiations.

Polyethylene materials are the preferred films with wide application due to their low

costs. Films with infrared inhibitor cut heat loss inside the greenhouse by up to 20% on

cloudless nights. The Polyethylene films come in thickness of 150 to 1000 microns and

have lifespan of 3 to 4 years. The most common size is the 400 microns version. Thicker

22
films have lower heat losses compared to thinner films but impede light transmission. A

400 micron thick UV (150µ) stabilized film was chosen for use in the project area due to

its availability and cost.

3.3.3 Floor Area

A polyurethane panel is used for the base of the solar dryer. This choice is based on

polyurethane's ability to prevent heat loss. Polyurethane panels are versatile, lightweight

(allowing for quick deployment), durable, and have low thermal conductivity. It is

painted black to further increase its thermal insulation performance.

3.3.4 Loading Trays

The loading tray is where the agricultural products are placed. It is made up of square

pipes with hard perforated nets as the base. The essence of this perforation is to attain

uniform airflow distribution.

Polyurethane board was used as insulator at the base and beneath the collector and the

drying chamber with a thickness of 7.5cm. Two trays holder made of aluminium angle

Iron of 25x25cm was fitted in such a way to hold the trays inside the drying chamber at a

gap of 15cm above each other. Polyethylene sheet of 3mm thickness serves as a

transmissivity medium for solar radiation and the dryer was framed with galvanised

hollow pipe of 5cm diameter. The dryer was inclined at an angle of 23.5o due north which

is the optimum slope angle of the experimental site. Inside the drying chamber, were two

23
movable perforated stainless trays of 1mm thickness that is constructed as the dryer trays

placed on top of the aluminium angle iron which serves as tray stand.

Figure 3.1: Base frame of the solar dryer

24
Figure 3.2: Completed view of the solar dryer

25
3.4 Principle of operation

The solar dryer works with natural convection, in which air is moved by buoyancy. The

dryer has built-in intake and exhaust vents designed to facilitate air distribution within the

dryer.

Solar radiation passes through the glazing materials and reaches the absorbing plate. The

absorption of the sun's strength is enhanced by the black painted inner surfaces of the

collectors and other frames, with the absorbed energy warming the air in the system.

Ambient air from the environment enters through the inlet vent, hot air rises into the

drying chamber, absorbs moisture from the sample loaded in the dryer, and exits through

the outlet vent at the top of the chamber.

3.5 Construction

The construction of the experimental gable-roof solar dryer would follow a series of

activities from the structural drawing using AUTOCAD to the construction of the base

area and sidewalls, gable roof, and installation of the glazing material.

26
Table 3.1: Proposed Solar Dryer Parameters

S/No. PARAMETER OPERATING CONDITION

1 Roof type Gable

2 Cladding material (sides and roof) Polyethylene

3 Cladding material (base area) Polyurethane

4 Orientation East-West (maximum solar reception)

5 Ventilation (natural ventilation)

7 Dimension 0.6 m x 0.9 m

8 Floor area 0.54

9 Volume 0.486m

10 Front base of solar dryer 0.6 m

11 Width of solar dryer 0.9 m

12 Number of trays Two

13 Tray size 700 400 400 mm

14 Loading per batch 5 kg

15 Drying time per batch 3 days

16 Roof inclination 32.7o

27
3.5.1 Data and calculations

Floor area of the structure

1ft = 304.8mm

600mm

900mm

Since it is a rectangle, cross-sectional area can be computed as:

Area of rectangle = length breadth

= 900 600

= 540,000mm

= 0.54m

Volume of the building

V=L B H

Where L B is area and H = height

28
V = 0.54 0.730

V = 0.486m

Inclined angle

Slant 327.1

Angle 23.5o

Height 130.4 300mm

29
Figure 3.3: Top view of the dryer with the roof top attached to it

Figure 3.4 Front view of the solar dryer

30
Figure 3.5: Closed isometric view of the solar dryer with dimensions

Figure 3.6: Open isometric view of the solar dryer

31
 3.6 Bill of Engineering Materials Evaluation (BEME)

The following data and prices of materials were gotten from Offa-Garage, Ilorin

Table 3.2: Quotation of the materials used for design and fabrication

DRYER MATERIALS DIMENSIONS UNIT QUANTITY BULK

PART COST (N) COST (N)
Frame Galvanised pipe inches 2,500 5 12,500
Rails Angle bar 1 2500
Floor Polyurethane 600 by 900 15,000 1 15,000
Board
Floor Angle bar 12 by 12 1 2500
slot
Door Hinges 300 2 600
Bolt 500 2 1000
Welding Electrode 1600 2 packs 3200
materials
Cutting and 1600 1 each 1600
grinding disc
Covering Polyethylene sheet 2800 mm2 1500 3 4500
Total 43,400

32
 CHAPTER FOUR

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Experimental Procedure

Chilli pepper was selected as sample for this experiment. The sample was rinsed and

sliced into two, weights were measured in kilogram using an electric weighing balance

and recorded. The samples were split evenly into two parts 1.1kg each.

The dryer was placed under sun, and no load test was carried out on the dryer and outside

dryer. The pepper was then spread on both trays, the perforated tray placed in the dryer

and the other placed outside as control sample.

A digital hygrometer was used for measuring the relative humidity and temperature of the

samples. The time taken for the samples to dry was recorded hourly throughout the

drying period, after drying, the samples were weighed and recorded.

4.2 The Performance Evaluation of the Dryer

The solar dryer was tested in October to evaluate its performance. No-load and load tests

were performed to measure ambient temperature, solar radiation, ambient relative

humidity, air temperature, and relative humidity inside the solar dryer.

The dryer was evaluated based on the drying time and efficiency compared to the control

sample. During the testing of the solar dryer, chilli pepper was dried using the solar

drying method under the same condition a control test was also conducted to properly

evaluate the performance of the dryer. Pepper used for both solar-drying and open sun

33
drying should have the same initial moisture content, as it comes from the same batch and

is evenly split into two parts of 1.1 kg each.

The samples took three days in the dryer to get to safe storage from 90% to 10.1% (wb).

Samples were weighed before and at the end to repeatedly determine the initial and final

weights, respectively.

4.1.1 Temperature outputs of the solar dryer

The result of the temperature outputs of the solar dryer with incident solar radiation using

the corresponding values of ambient temperatures as control are as follows:

Table 4.1 shows the effect of drying temperature on pepper using solar dryer. The

temperatures inside the dryer and the solar collector were much higher than the ambient

temperature during most hours of the daylight for about two hours immediately after

12.00h (noon) daily thereby allows continuous drying of pepper. This indicates prospect

for better performance than openair sun drying. Similar results were documented by

(Olatunbosun, 2011) in the design work, construction and testing of a solar dryer for

humidity extraction.

34
Table 4.1: Effect of drying temperature on pepper using solar dryer

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3

Time Tem Tem Relativ Tem Tem Relativ Tem Tem Relativ
p in p e p in p e p in p e
(oC) out humidi (oC) out humidi (oC) out humidi
(oC) ty (%) (oC) ty (%) o
( C) ty (%)
8:00 25.7 25.6 91 25.9 25.9 98 26.9 26.9 95
am
9:00 27.4 28.2 86 42.6 37.7 37 28.7 28.6 38
am
10:00a 36.5 34.3 74 45.7 40.3 32 36.5 35.0 30
m
11:00a 48.5 42.0 29 49.9 44.0 26 44.1 40.2 29
m
12:00p 47.6 43.6 29 48.4 39.0 34 48.9 40.1 29
m
1:00p 44.6 44.8 34 44.6 42.6 31 44.9 41.9 30
m
2:00p 41.1 47.2 36 41.7 46.3 34 40.6 44.8 36
m
3:00 41.0 48.5 36 40.5 45.4 34 40.1 45.7 37
pm
4:00 38.2 44.8 44 36.0 36.4 47 38.6 30.6 40
pm
5:00 34.0 35.1 52 31.1 31.4 60 34.4 35.1 46
pm
6:00 31.1 30.9 69 29.6 29.8 71 30.1 30.1 58
pm
7:00 28.9 28.6 76 26.5 26.3 84 28.1 28.9 69
pm
8:00 27.8 27.8 86 25.7 25.4 85 27.0 27.0 75
pm
9:00 27.5 27.4 88 25.5 25.3 86 26.1 26.0 87
pm
10:00p 26.9 26.0 90 25.0 24.5 90 24.7 24.5 90
m

35
4.1.2 Temperature and relative humidity variation

Figure 4.1 shows the time course results of the temperature in the solar collector drying

oven compared to the ambient temperature as a control for the dryer-dried pepper on the

first drying day. Figure 4.1 shows that the dryer is hottest around noon when the sun is

overhead. The maximum temperature in the solar dryer in October 2022 was observed to

be 48.5 °C at 11:00 am and the minimum temperature in the solar dryer was 25.7 °C at

8:00 am. The highest temperature was 48.5 °C at 3 pm and the lowest temperature at 8

am in October 2022 was 25.6 °C. Also, the maximum relative humidity at night was

observed to be 99%. On the other hand, the minimum relative humidity from 11:00 am to

12:00 pm was 29%.

100
90
80
70
60
50 Temp in
40 Temp out
30
RH
20
10
0

Drying time (hr)

Figure4.1: Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative humidity in first day of
drying stage.

36
Figure 4.2 shows the drying results for the second day of the hourly history of the

temperature in the solar collector drying oven compared to the ambient temperature as a

control for the solar dried pepper. Figure 4.2 shows that dryer is hottest around noon

when the sun is overhead. In October 2022, the maximum temperature inside the solar

dryer was observed to be 49.9 °C at 11:00 am and the minimum temperature was 25.0 °C

at 10:00 pm. The highest temperature was 46.3 °C at 2 pm and the lowest temperature at

10 pm in October 2022 was 24.5 °C. Also, the maximum relative humidity at night was

observed to be 99%. On the other hand, the minimum relative humidity at 11:00 am was

26%.

120

100

80

60 Temp in
Temp out
40
RH

20

Drying time (hr)

Figure 4.2: Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative humidity in second day
of drying stage.

37
Figure 4.3 shows the results on day 3 of drying for the hourly history of temperature in

the solar collector drying cabinet compared to ambient temperature as a control for solar

dried pepper. Figure 4.3 shows that at 12:00 in October 2022 the maximum temperature

inside the solar dryer is 48.9 °C and at 22:00 the lowest temperature inside the solar dryer

is 24.7 °C. At 3pm, the highest temperature was 45.7 °C, and at 10 pm in October 2022,

the lowest temperature was 24.5 °C. Also, the maximum relative humidity at night was

observed to be 99%. On the other hand, the minimum relative humidity from 11:00 am to

12:00 pm was 29%.

The drying air temperature in this study was 45–50 °C and that of Eddy et al. (1991) and

Medugu (2010) was 58–62 °C.

100
90
80
70
60
50 Temp in
40 Temp out
30 RH
20
10
0

Drying time (hr)

Figure 4.3:Variation of solar dryer air temperature and relative humidity in third day of
drying stage.
38
Figure 4.4: Opened front view of solar dryer during drying of chilli pepper (first day).

39
Figure 4.5: Closed view of the solar dryer during drying

40
Figure 4.6:Control sample (first day)

41
Figure 4.7: Pepper after drying in the solar dryer (third day)

42
 Figure 4.8: Control sample after drying (third day)

4.1.3 Moisture content variation

Figure 4.9 compares the change in moisture content over time during solar drying of

chilli peppers and the variation in moisture content during sun drying for a typical test

procedure. The initial moisture content of the material (pepper) in the solar dryer was

90% (w.b). In contrast, the water content at the end of the first day of testing was 74.3%

(w.b). The moisture content of the peppers at the beginning of the second day of the

43
experiment was 71.6% (w.b) and at the end of the second day of the experiment was

45.4% (w.b) (Figure 4.7). As shown in Figure 4.7, the moisture content of pepper on the

wet basis of the sun dryer was 44.1% at the beginning of the 3rd day and 10.1% at the

end of the 3rd day.

It is observed that the pepper drying up to 10.1% moisture content (w.b) took three days

to complete its drying cycle compared to open sun drying which took four days to reach

the same moisture content as the solar dryer and was also affected by rain and other

factors during the day and had to be taken under shade.

100
90
80
70
60
50 Solar dryer
40 Open sun
30
20
10
0
morning night morning night morning night morning night

day1 day2 day3 day 4

Figure 4.9: Variation of moisture content and drying rate with time.

44
4.1.4 Efficiency of the dryer

The efficiency of a drying system is usually given as: drying efficiency, heat collection

efficiency, heat collection efficiency. The efficiency of the drying system is indicated by

changes in the specific moisture removal rate.

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
8:00 AM 9:00 AM 10:00 11:00 12:00 1:00 PM 2:00 PM 3:00 PM 4:00 PM 5:00 PM 6:00 PM
AM AM PM

solar collector efficiency

Figure 4.10: Collector efficiency of solar dryer with time for drying pepper

Figure 4.10 shows that the solar collector efficiency varies between 25.9% and 49.9%. A

maximum collector efficiency of 49.9% was reached at 11:00 h. The average collector

efficiency was determined to be 39.6%. The collector efficiencies of the dryers observed

in this study are observed to be similar to those of (Forson, Nazha, Akuffo, and

Rajakaruna, 2007) and (Gatea, 2011).

45
 CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION

Solar radiation is very effective and, with proper application, can dry the produce around

us. This has been demonstrated and the designed and manufactured solar dryers have

demonstrated sufficient capacity to dry agricultural products, especially food products, to

significantly reduce their moisture content. Locally available and cheap materials were

used to make the solar dryer, making it affordable for everyone, especially farmers. It can

be widely used on most crops, making a significant contribution to reducing food waste

and food shortages at the same time. Solar energy is also required for operation. Solar

energy is readily available in the tropics and is also clean energy. Reduce the cost and

time of drying produce in direct sunlight to protect the environment and dry food faster.

Food is also better protected in a sun dryer than in direct sunlight, reducing pest and

insect infestation and contamination.

The solar dryer with total collector area of 0.54 m2 is capable of drying about 5kg of fresh

pepper in 72h. The solar drying helped to reduce the drying time from 96h to 72h for the

same level of moisture contents in comparison to the open sun drying of Pepper. The

average collector efficiency of solar dryer for drying pepper was 40.02% in the month of

October.

46
 RECOMMENDATION

There is still room for improvement regarding the potential thermal energy storage of

heat energy within the system. Also, weather data must be readily available to users of

solar products to maximize system efficiency and effectiveness. Such information could

guide local farmers when to dry and when not to dry their produce.

There is also room for improvement for the dryer to dry products at night. And the

decreased rate of efficiency to a large extent on cloudy days.

47
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