A Review on Solar Drying of Agricultural Produce

Abstract

The conventional drying system to preserve fruits, vegetables, grains, fish, meat, wood and other agricultural products is sun drying which is a free and renewable source of energy. But, for large-scale production, there are various known limitations of sun drying as damage to the crops by animals, birds and rodents, degradation in quality due to direct exposure to solar radiation, dew or rain, contamination by dirt, dust or debris. Also this system is labour- and time intensive, as crops have to be covered at night and during bad weather, and have to be protected from attack by domestic animals. There is also a chance of insect infestation and growth of microorganism due to non-uniform drying. The advancement of sun drying is solar drying systems in which products are dried in a closed system in which inside temperature is higher [1]. Major advantage includes protection against flies, pests, rain or dust. Several significant attempts have been made in recent years to harness solar energy for drying mainly to preserve agricultural products and get the benefit from the energy provided by the sun. Sun drying of crops is the most widespread method of food preservation in most part of India and world because of solar irradiance being very high for the most of the year. As this technique needs no energy during day time, it is more beneficial to the small scale farmers who can’t afford the electricity or other fuel for drying. If it is necessary to dry product in night or in bad weather, an additional bio-fuelled heater can be used for heat supply.