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.

The optimization of corn drying at low temperatures was studied adopting the dynamic programming technique. The objective was to development a computational program to minimize the energy consumption trough the optimization of the process management. The theoretical fundaments of the dynamic programming were adapted to the operational characteristics of the drying process. The algorithm generates management strategies, that minimize the energy consumption, fixing on an operational routine for fan and heather functioning for a pre-determined drying period and preserving the grain quality and avoiding excessive humidity gradients in the bed at the stages of drying.