Click on “Download PDF” for the PDF version or on the title for the HTML version. If you are not an ASABE member or if your employer has not arranged for access to the full-text, Click here for options. Modeling and Optimization of a Three-Stage Conveyor Type Dryer for the Dehydration of Onion SlicesPublished by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan www.asabe.org Citation: Paper number 023147, 2002 ASAE Annual Meeting . (doi: 10.13031/2013.11233) @2002Authors: R. S. RAPUSAS, R. H. DRISCOLL Keywords: Modeling; optimization; onion dryer; mathematical model; optical index; parameters A heat and mass balance model of the drying process in a three-stage conveyor type dryer based on a finite difference approach was developed as a tool for optimizing such a drying system. The thermo-physical properties of onion slices (Allium cepa L.) required by the model were represented by empirical equations. A quality model describing the changes in optical index of the onion slices during drying was incorporated in the drying model. In order to solve the drying model a computer program was developed and validated using experimental data from pilot-scale tests in a computer-aided experimental onion dryer simulating the commercial three-stage onion drying process. The product temperature and moisture content predictions of the computerized drying simulation model showed good agreement with the results of the thick-bed onion drying experiments. With the validated model and given a specific drying capacity requirement, the drying of onion slices in a three-stage conveyor dryer was optimized in terms of specific energy consumption within specified quality limits for product moisture content and optical index. (Download PDF) (Export to EndNotes)
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