FLUIDISED BED DRYER FOR OILSEEDS

During the last few years the production of land the area under cultivation for various oilseeds has undergone rapid increase, making the annual production over 214 lakh tonne on an average, which is a valuable raw material for edible oils.  During harvest, the moisture content of the oilseeds is normally high and this has to be brought down to a safe desired level for storage and further processing. 

CMERI has developed a very effective means of overcoming the moisture problem where the harvestged oilseeds are dried artificially in a dryer with heated air either on individual farms or at the mandi level.  This Fluidised Bed Dryer offers many inherent advantages as:

• Intimate gas-seed contact

• Enhanced heat & mass exchange

• Better product quality in terms of uniformity of temperature and moisture content

• Fast and efficient drying

• Fewer moving parts

• Reduced maintenance

• Easier control of residence time and other process parameters

• Higher thermal efficiency

• Larger handling capacities at competitive energy costs

• Provision of simultaneous cleaning, cooling and disinfecting the grains.

CMERI is also working on the modification of the developed fluidised bed dryer for drying of paddy and par bodied rice since there is enormous potential for application of the dryer in India and other south-east Asian countries where paddy is produced in bulk.  Side by side, a portable unit of fluidised bed dryer is being designed for remote rural applications.  The unit shall be installed on a trailer for transportation to the more remote rural sites.  Haulage and power for operating the dryer shall be provided by the tractor itself. 

The probable beneficiaries include: 

• Food Corporation of India
• State Oil Federations
• Oilseed Federations
• Oil Mill Federations
• Agencies dealing with storage of seeds, agrocrops etc.
• Tea Boards
• Coffee Board
• Spice Board