Development and pilot testing of the NAPHIRE [National Postharvest Inst. for Research and Extension] mobile flash dryer

• Published in: Philippine Technology Journal (Philippines) Vol. 20; no. 2
• Main Authors: Bulaong, M.C, Paz, R.R, Anchiboy, T.F, Rodriguez, A.C
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.04.1995
• Subjects: ARROZ; COSTOS; COUT; DESEMPENO DE LA MAQUINARIA; FILIPINAS; PERFORMANCE DU MATERIEL; PHILIPPINES; RIZ; SECADORAS; SECHOIR
• ISSN: 0116-7294

A Mobile Flash Dryer (MFD) was designed and developed to arrest deterioration right at the farm during increment weather conditions. The dryer was designed as a first stage dryer to allow farmers to pre-dry their palay during rainy days and safely store them while waiting for the sunshine. It also takes advantage of the fact that water in high moisture grain is easier and therefore, cheaper to extract than in lower moisture grain. The dryer, being mobile, could be towed at farm households where immediate drying could be done. A protype model was constructed and field-tested. Feedbacks from farmers during testing operations were considered and used as basis in the modification and in the construction of the pilot model. Pilot testing of the developed mobile flash dryer was conducted to evaluate its technical and economic performance under field conditions. The Saguma Irrigators Multi-purpose Cooperative Inc. (SIMCI), a farmer cooperative composed of 108 members with a total of 243 ha, was chosen as pilot site for the study. The cooperative is located in Bayugan, Agusan del Sur [Philippines], a province noted for its perennial wet conditions making grain drying one of its worst problem. The MFD was pilot tested at the coop for two cropping seasons in 1991 using a two-stage drying strategy of flash drying for the first stage to dry grains down to 18 percent, and sundrying for the second stage to dry grains to 14 percent. Based on the results of the study, the capacity of the mobile flash dryer ranged from 9 to 12 cavans per hour with operating cost ranging from P9.75 to P12.21 per cavan. The study also shows that the factors affecting the utilization of the MFD were the volume of wet stocks arriving at the coop, weather conditions, moisture content of the grain, and labor management expertise. The operating cost of the MFD were greatly affected by three factors: utilization rate, kerosene consumption and labor cost. Actual economic performance of the MFD and SIMCI shows that investing in the MFD in an area like Agusan del Sur where sundrying is very difficult throughout the year is profitable. Continuous rains maximize the MFD utilization thereby lowering its operating cost. An MFD client will have higher net income by using the MFD to dry his grain rather than selling it wet and allowing deterioration to set in before sundrying. Using the MFD in a two-stage drying strategy in combination with sundrying is viable than using it for straight drying