Debre Berhan University

Collage of engineering

Department of mechanical engineering

Project

Design and construction of solar dryer for

leftover food

Submitted to Mr.Sase

Submission date 5/16/2022

 Group 2
Number Name ID number
1. Mintesinot Daba……………………………….......0727/10
2. Mayebet Goshu…………………………………..T/0905/10
3. Twedros girma…………………………………..…0941/10
4. Temesgen muluneh…………………………………0300/10
5. Asaminew Shambel………………………………..T/412/10
6. Belege Gossa………………………………………..0183/10
Contents
Abstract.......................................................................................................................................................v
Chapter one.................................................................................................................................................1
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................1
Statement of problem.................................................................................................................................2
Objective.....................................................................................................................................................2
General objective.....................................................................................................................................2
Specific objective....................................................................................................................................2
Methodology...............................................................................................................................................3
Scope...........................................................................................................................................................4
Limitation....................................................................................................................................................4
Delimitation.................................................................................................................................................4
Chapter Two................................................................................................................................................5
Literature review.........................................................................................................................................5
2.1. Classification of Solar Dryers...........................................................................................................5
2.1.1. Open Sun Drying.......................................................................................................................5
2.1.2. Direct (Green house) Solar Drying............................................................................................6
2.1.3. Indirect Solar Drying.................................................................................................................7
2.2. Modes of Air Flow in Solar Dryer....................................................................................................8
2.3. Solar Dryers Designed by Different Researcher...............................................................................8
2.4. Moisture Contents and Maximum Allowable Temperature of Various crops.................................10
2.5. Psychometric Chart.........................................................................................................................11
2.6. Solar panel......................................................................................................................................11
2.6.1 Types of solar panels.........................................................................................................11
2.6.2. Solar Photovoltaic System...........................................................................................................13
2.6.3. Selection Considerations..............................................................................................................14
2.7. Battery Bank...................................................................................................................................15
2.7.1. Lead-Acid Batteries.................................................................................................................15
2.7.2. Alkaline Batteries....................................................................................................................15
2.8. Charge Controller...........................................................................................................................16
 2.8.1. Types of Charge Controllers....................................................................................................17
2.9. Switches.........................................................................................................................................18
2.9.1. Types of Switches....................................................................................................................18
2.10. Fans..............................................................................................................................................20
2.10.1 Fan types.................................................................................................................................20
CHAPTER THREE........................................................................................................................................22
CONCEPT GENERATION FOR SOLAR DRYER...............................................................................................22
3.2. Design matrix.................................................................................................................................23
3.3 Selection of the Suitable One...........................................................................................................24
3.4 Main Components of the Selected (Greenhouse) Solar Dryers........................................................24
3.5 Working Principle of Greenhouse Solar Dryer................................................................................24
Reference...................................................................................................................................................26
 Abstract
In this proposal we are going to design and construct a machine which is useful for our
university. This machine is called a solar dryer for leftover foods; this machine function is to dry
the moistures content of food to keep them safe and healthy.
In our campus there is a big issue that has to be solved; there is a cafeteria which was built for
students and in front of this cafeteria there is a hole to keep leftover foods from students; and it
makes a bad smell. This bad smell is risky for everyone’s healthy; and this careless and risky
work will be eliminated by our project.
Our main objective is to design; construct a machine which uses solar energy to dry leftover
foods mentioned before as a problem.
At the beginning we will identify the problem surely and collect the necessary data for the design
and construction of the project; after we conclude this we directly start our design by using
simulation software‘s, make the design analysis then we proceed to the prototype to test while our
design is working properly; but before that we have to estimate the time, the cost and select the
materials needed for the prototype. The total cost we estimate will be 41,312 ETB.

Key words:- solar dryer, leftover, moisture

 Chapter one

Introduction
Solar drying is the drying of products in enclosed structure by using solar energy that comes from the sun.
The solar dryer will assist by the movement of air( wind) that removes the more saturated air away from
the items being dry.

Drying means the process of removing moisture and in the case of drying of food it is either to prevent
the activities of microorganism for easy efficient storage or to reduce the bulk weight for easy
transportation. It is a better means of increasing the quality of final dry product, reducing post-harvest
losses but the performance of solar dryer is significantly dependent on the weather condition.

The application of solar energy which are enjoying most success in today are ; heating and cooling of
residential building, solar water heating, solar drying of agriculture and animal products, solar cookers,
food refrigeration, solar furnaces and solar electric power generation and there are so many thing which
uses this solar system which is friendly with ecosystem.

In Deber Berhan university they are one cafeteria for all students; from this cafeteria there is a huge
amount of waste food are collected together and from this trimming food some amount are given to
cattleman who lives around that campus in the way of unsafe and un healthy. This will cause health
problem to the cattleman; the other trimming food will dispel into the hole and it also have a bad smell;
the cause of this smell to students are critical on their health.

Then our project will solve this problem by drying those moistures food using solar energy and enclosed
system by preventing contamination and another problem which affect the food by changing its original
properties.

Our concern on this proposal is to design the best and good quality with perfect efficiency of solar
depending food dryer.

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Statement of problem
In the main campus of debre berhan university all students uses a single cafeteria that located in un
appropriate location (place); when we say this it located near to the library and we get some classes and
offices are after we pass through the cafeteria in case of that there is a smell; a smell that is bad for health
and also not comfortable. We already know that this smell comes from the foods that are left un
appropriately in unsafe place. These cause health problems to everyone in this place like students, office
workers, and cafeteria workers and also anyone who passes through that place.

Objective
General objective
 Our main and first concern is to design and construct a machine that dries foods by using solar
energy.

Specific objective
As specific objective we select the following points.

 To know how to dry foods

 To select appropriate materials
 Sketching the components on SOLIDWORKS
 To design and analyze the material
 To test the machine by making the prototype

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Methodology
During the design of solar dryer for leftover food a series of methods will follow. These are;
A. Problem identification and justification
In this section it identifies the miss use of the leftover foods and its negative effect to society.
B. Data collection that are necessary to design the solar dryer
i. Studies the leftover Injera sizes by.
 Visual Observation in the student cafeterias and
 Oral interview with the student cafeteria workers
 Measuring the mass and volume of the leftover foods.
ii. Studies the properties of leftover Injera and environmental conditions of debre berhan
university such as;
 Initial and final moisture content of leftover Injera
 Ambient air temperature and ambient relative humidity from metrological data
 Solar radiation and daily Sunshine Hours from metrological data.

C. Applying of concept generation and select the suitable types of solar dryers.
Selections of the types of solar dryers depend on;
 Sizes (area) that need to dry items.
 Drying time (length of time) that needed to dry the leftover food.
 Simplicity of structure
 Loading capacity /drying capacity
 Overall Efficiency of the dryer
D. Design analysis of solar dryer
i. Design for physical features of the solar dryer: -
 Size (length, width and height) of the solar dryer.
 Structure of the drying area of the solar dryer
 Design of Air Inlet, Drying Chamber, Air Outlet
 Selection of Solar Panel, Transparent glass and fans.
ii. Design calculation for Thermal performance of the solar dryer:
 Drying time/drying rate by using Psychometric chart
 Drying air temperature and relative humidity.
 Airflow rate.
 Dryer efficiency.

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E. Estimating for the rough costs of solar dryer
 By asking on market about the cost of solar dryer components.
F. Modeling the main part and assembly drawing of solar dryer by:
 Using SOLID WORKS software

Scope
The scope of this proposal is to select and conduct the proper material, thermal performance and
design analysis of main components of the solar dryer, modeling of main parts and assembly
drawing of the machine using SOLIDWORKS and estimate the rough costs of the whole
components on the solar dryer machine.

Limitation
 Not workable at night.
 Efficiency decreases to a large extent on cloudy days.
 Overheating may occur if regular attention is not paid.
 Due to overheating it can decrease the quality of food.
 We cannot get the accurate amount of sun rays and heat.

Delimitation
 Most of the time students stay in this campus in sessions when the sun is occurred.
 In Ethiopia most months get sunlight and this can fix the above limitations.
 We can get energy from unpaid source; this means it uses natural resource.
 It will have storage battery to save energy for the night.

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 Chapter Two

Literature review
2.1. Classification of Solar Dryers
Generally, solar dryers can broadly be classified into direct, indirect and open sun solar dryer
based on the working principle of the dryers, method of solar energy collection and conversion to
useful thermal energy for drying.

2.1.1. Open Sun Drying

Working principle of open sun drying by using only the solar energy. The products are generally
spread on the ground, mat, cement floor where they receive short wavelength solar energy during
a major part of the day and also natural air circulation. A part of the energy is reflected back and
the remaining is absorbed by the surface depending upon the colour of the products. The
absorbed radiation is converted into thermal energy and the temperature of the material starts to
increase. However, there are losses like the long wavelength radiation loss from the surface of
product to ambient air through moist air and also convective heat loss due to the blowing wind
through moist air over the product surface. The process is independent of any other source of
energy except sunlight and hence the cheapest method. However, it has a number of limitations.
In general, the open sun drying method does not fulfill the required quality standards and
sometimes the products cannot be sold in the international market. With the awareness of
inadequacies involved in open sun drying, a more scientific method of solar‐energy utilization
for product drying has emerged termed as solar drying.

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Fig. 2.1: Working principle of open sun dryer

2.1.2. Direct (Green house) Solar Drying

Working principle of direct solar product drying when the air entering into the drying chamber
from the atmosphere and escaping through exit of the dryer. Direct type of drying usually
consists of the drying chamber covered by a transparent material that is glass. This allows solar
radiation into the chamber to heat up and increase the temperature of the air and the product
being dried. In the direct solar dryer, the total solar radiation impinging on the glass cover a part
is reflected back to atmosphere and the remaining is transmitted inside the drying chamber. A
part of the transmitted radiation is then reflected back from the product surface and the rest is
absorbed by the surface of the product which causes its temperature to increase and there by emit
long wavelength radiations which are not allowed to escape to atmosphere due to the glass cover.
The overall conditions causes the temperature above the product inside the drying chamber to be
higher. The glass cover in the drying chamber thus serves in reducing direct convective losses to
the ambient which plays an important role in increasing the product and drying chamber
temperature [2].

Figure 2.2: Working principle of direct solar drying

The advantages of direct solar drying over open sun drying are;
 Contamination of product due to enclosure with transparent cover is less.

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  It has high drying capacity.
 It takes short time to dry high products.
 Simpler and cheaper to construct than the indirect‐type for the same loading
capacity.
 Offer protection from rains, dews, debris etc.
The limitation of direct solar dryer;
 Liability to over‐heat locally causing product damage.
 Small capacity limits it to small scale applications.
 Discolouration of products due to direct exposure to solar radiation.
 Moisture condensation inside glass covers reduces its transitivity.
 Insufficient rise in product temperature affects moisture removes.

2.1.3. Indirect Solar Drying

This differs from direct dryers with respect to heat transfer and vapour removal. Working
principle of indirect solar drying, the products in these indirect solar dryers are located in trays or
shelves inside an opaque drying cabinet and a separate unit termed as solar collector is used for
heating of the entering air into the cabinet. The heated air is allowed to flow through the wet
products that provides the heat for moisture evaporation by convective heat transfer between the
hot air and the wet products. Drying takes place due to the difference in moisture concentration
between the drying air and the air in the vicinity of product surface[1].

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Figure 2.3: Working principle of Indirect Solar Drying

The advantages of indirect solar drying are;

 Offers a better control over drying and the product obtained is of better quality
than open sun drying.
 This technique avoids contamination of final product.
 Maintain the quality of product by avoiding direct exposure in solar radiations.
Limitation of Indirect solar dryer;
 Requires more initial cost.
 It has small drying capacity.
 It takes long time to dry small products.
However, relatively elaborate structures requiring more capital investment in equipment and
experience larger maintenance costs than the direct drying units.

2.2. Modes of Air Flow in Solar Dryer

Basically, the modes of air flow in solar dryers can be classified as passive and active ones:
a. Passive solar dryers, when air is heated and circulated naturally by buoyancy force or as a
result of wind pressure. Where products are dried by direct impingement from the sun’s radiation
with natural air circulation is known as natural convection. Natural convection dryers do not
require a fan to blow the air through the dryer. Normal and reverse absorber cabinet dryer and
greenhouse dryer operates in passive mode. These are primitive, inexpensive in construction with
locally available materials, easy to install and to operate especially at sites far off from electrical
grid. The passive dryers are best suited for drying small batches of fruits and vegetables such as
banana, pineapple, mango, potato, carrots etc.
b. Active solar dryers, where hot drying air is circulated by means of a ventilator or forced
convection. Forced convection dryers require a fan to blow the air through the dryer.

2.3. Solar Dryers Designed by Different Researcher

i. Dinesh Acharya et. al. [2016] described how the use of solar dryer is slowly finding its
way for food drying in Nepal. The use of direct type dryer is being common for house

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 hold purpose but the indirect type dryer still has limited application. This work is an
attempt to evaluate the performance of the existing design of indirect type solar dryer. In
this study solar rack dryer with drying capacity of 10 kg cauliflower per batch is used,
however, only 6kg of fresh cauliflower is used. Some known quantity of cauliflower is
kept into the electric oven until it will bone dry. The difference between the initial and
final weight of the cauliflower is the total amount of water contain. It can easily be built
with commonly available materials. The dryer uses corrugated aluminum plate as an
absorber surface. The insulating material used is Styrofoam. The drying chamber has 6
trays with 1 door for material loading and unloading. The maximum efficiency of the
dryer was found to be 30.14% after performance evaluation.
ii. Satish Birbal Prajapati et. al. [2016] explained an indirect type forced convection solar
dryer is fabricate with the components like evacuated tube collector, drying chamber and
blower. The performance of the designed drier is evaluated by carrying drying
experiments with copra at India. A short survey of these showed that applying the forced
convection solar dryer not only significantly reduced the drying time but also resulted in
many improvements in the quality of the dried products. Solar drying of copra is carried
for forced convection and is compared with natural convection solar drying. The
temperature of the drying chamber ranges from 49ºC to 78ºC for natural and forced
convection while the ambient temperature ranges from 28ºC to 32ºC. Initial moisture
content of copra ranges from 51.7% to 52.3% and the final moisture content obtained
about 7 to 8%. The forced convection solar dryer takes less time than the natural
convection solar dryer to attain the equilibrium moisture content. Solar drying copra
obtained was free from smoke, dust, bird and rodent damage.
iii. B.K. Bala et. al. [2001] has performed field level experiments on solar drying of
pineapple using solar tunnel drier were conducted at Bangladesh Agricultural
University. The drier consists of a transparent plastic covered flat plate collector and a
drying tunnel connected in a series to supply hot air directly into the drying tunnel using
two dc fans operated by a solar module. This drier has a loading capacity of 120-150 kg
of pineapple. The pineapple being dried in the solar tunnel drier were completely
protected from rain, insects and dust, and the quality of the pineapple dried in the tunnel
drier was better quality dried products as compared to sun dried products.

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 iv. J. Kaewkiew ET. Al. [2012] studied on performance of a large-scale greenhouse
type solar dryer for drying chilli. The dryer has a parabolic shape and it is covered
with polycarbonate sheets. The base of the dryer is a concrete floor with an area of 8*20
m2. Nine DC fans powered by three 50 W solar cell modules were used to ventilate the
dryer. Three batches of chilli were dried in the dryer. It was found that five hundred
kilograms of chilli with the initial moisture content of 74% (Wb) were dried within 3
days while the natural sun dried needed 5 days. The chilli dried in this dryer was
completely protected from insects, animals and rain.

2.4. Moisture Contents and Maximum Allowable Temperature of Various crops

Generally, solar drying is broadly applied in various agricultural products such as fruits,
vegetables, grains, seeds and beans. Energy required for the drying process depends on the initial
and final moisture content of the products.
The various crops along with their moisture content and maximum allowable temperatures are
listed in Table below.
NO Crops Initial moisture Final Maximum Drying Time
Contents % Moisture Allowable (hr.)
Contents % Temperature
(°C)

1 Onion 85 6 55 48

2 Tomatoes 85 6 60 36
3 Carrots 70 5 75 9-11

4 Cabbage 80 4 55 2-3
5 Green beans 70 5 75 6-8

6 Potatoes 75 13 75 <4hrs
7 Apples 82 11-14 65-70 24-26

8 Bananas 80 15 70 15
9 Mango 85 13 31.7-40.1 20

10 Coffee 65 11 50 288

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 11 Maize 35 15 60 72

Table 2.1: moisture contents and maximum allowable temperatures

2.5. Psychometric Chart

In solar dryer the psychometric is importance as it refers to the properties of air‐vapor mixture
that controls the rate of drying. When an adequate supply of heat is provided for drying, the
temperature and rate at which the liquid vaporization occurs will depend on the vapor
concentration in the surrounding atmosphere. When a free liquid or wetted surface is present,
drying will occur at the saturation temperature, just as free water at 101.325 kPa vaporizes in a
100 percent steam atmosphere at 100 °C. Psychometric is the study of the properties of mixtures
of air and water vapor.
Relative humidity (Φ); is defined as the ratio of the mole fraction of water vapor in moist air to
mole fraction of water vapor in saturated air at the same temperature and pressure.
Humidity ratio (W); the humidity ratio (or specific humidity) W is the mass of water associated
with each kilogram of dry air.
Enthalpy; the enthalpy of moist air is the sum of the enthalpy of the dry air and the enthalpy of
the water vapor. Enthalpy values are always based on some reference value. For moist air, the
enthalpy of dry air is given a zero value at 0oC, and for water vapor the enthalpy of saturated
water is taken as zero at 0oC.
Psychometric chart are very useful to calculate humidity ratio and enthalpy of leftover foods.

2.6. Solar panel

Solar panel is panels designed to absorb sun‘s rays as a source of energy for generating
electricity or heating. Photovoltaic modules constitute the photovoltaic array of a photovoltaic
system that generates and supplies solar electricity in commercial and residential applications.
Each module is rated by its DC output power under standard test conditions (STC), and
typically ranges from 100 to 400 watts.

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2.6.1 Types of solar panels
2.6.1.1. Mono crystalline Solar Cells
This type of solar cell is made from thin wafers of silicon cut from artificially-grown
crystals. These cells are created from single crystals grown in isolation making them the
most expensive of the three varieties(approximately 35% more expensive than equivalent
polycrystalline cells) but they have the highest efficiency rating between 15-24%.

Figure2.4: Mono crystalline Solar Cells

2.6.1.2. Polycrystalline Solar Cells

This type of solar cell is also made from thin wafers of silicon cut from artificially grown
crystals, but instead of single crystals, these cells are made from multiple interlocking silicon
crystals grown together. This makes them cheaper to produce, but their efficiency is lower than
the mono crystalline solar cells, currently at 13 -18%.

Figure2.5: Polycrystalline Solar Cells

2.6.1.3. Amorphous solar cells

These are the cheapest type of solar cell to produce are relatively new to the market and
are produced very differently to the two other types. Instead of using crystals, silicon is
deposited very thinly on a backing substrate. There are two real benefits of the amorphous
solar cell. Firstly the layer of silicon is so thin it allows the solar cells to be flexible, and

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secondly they are more efficient in low light levels (like during winter). They have the lowest
efficiency rating of all three types approximately 7% – 9%, requiring approximately double the
panel area to produce the same output.

Figure 2.6: amorphous solar cells

2.6.1.4. Hybrid Solar Cells

This is a type of solar cell which combination of both amorphous solar cells and mono
crystalline solar cells. These are known as HIT solar cells (Hetero junction with Intrinsic Thin
Layer – a bit of a mouthful), and have higher efficiency ratings than any of the other three types
of solar cell alone. In addition, they are also better suited in sunnier climes, where
temperatures often exceed 25o C, creating up to 10% more electricity.

Thus we have selected a mono crystalline solar cell that is with characteristics having;

 Highest efficiency
 Durability up to 25 years
 With enough space-efficient
 Less exposed to corrosion

2.6.2. Solar Photovoltaic System

Nowadays a great variety of different PV installations is available on the market including on-
and off-grid systems with or without battery as a storage system; hybrid systems as combination
of a PV system and another energy source (like wind and hydro power) are progressively getting
more attention. For this case we have selected a stand-alone with a self-regulating DC battery
storage system with a charge controller.

How Solar panel Works;

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A Solar cell converts the light energy directly into electrical energy by photovoltaic effect, which
is physical and chemical phenomenon. The solar cells put together as a module is called as solar
pane. Photons in sunlight hit the solar panel and absorbed by semiconducting materials such as
silicon. Electrons are excited from their current molecular/atomic orbital. Once excited an
electron can either dissipate the energy as heat and return to its orbital or travel through the cell
until it reaches an electrode. Current flows through the material to cancel the potential and this
electricity is captured. The chemical bonds of the material are vital for this process to work, and
usually silicon is used in two layers, one layer being bonded with boron, the other phosphorus.
These layers have different chemical electric charges and subsequently both drive and direct the
current of electrons. An array of solar cells converts solar energy into a usable amount of direct
current (DC) electricity. An inverter can convert the power to alternating current (AC).

2.6.3. Selection Considerations

To select good performance and reliabile PV system the following site-specific factors should be
considere.

1. Location: expresses position of the sun, sun paths, peak sun hours and the amount of
available solar radiation are defined by latitude and longitude.

2. Orientation and tilt: to be applied in a fixed tilt system should face true south with a tilt
angle equal to latitude. Latitude-tilt can get decreased by 15 degree or get increased based on
modelled losses with respect to the optimum.

3. Shading: Shading analysis shall include near field shading and far shading . Near shading
(e.g. caused by trees or another row of modules) affects a part an array, while far shading (e.g.
hills or relatively big buildings) can affect the whole array. Near-shading effect can be
considered as a mismatch meaning that shading of one module in a string equals to shading of
the entire string that can only carry current of the weakest link. Uniform far shading does not
allow any horizontal radiation to reach the array.

Orientation of a panel is critical with constant row-shading issue. Since PV systems are mainly
south-oriented, it is important to take into account the position of the obstacles. East-west
shading will go along the lower edge of nearby rows, thus considering the configuration of by-
pass diodes within a module landscape orientation would benefit to reduce the overall shading

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effect on the module. Portrait orientation would be advantageous for mitigating shading effect
from east or west-located obstacles, i.e. north-south shading.

2.7. Battery Bank

Batteries store direct current electrical energy for later use. However, batteries reduce the
efficiency and output of the PV system, typically by about 20 percent for lead-acid batteries.
Batteries also increase the complexity and cost of the system.
Types of batteries commonly used in PV systems are:
 Lead-acid batteries
 Absorbent glass mat
 Gel cell
 Flooded (a.k.a. Liquid vented)
 Sealed (a.k.a. Valve-Regulated Lead Acid)
 Alkaline batteries
 Nickel-cadmium
 Nickel-iron

2.7.1. Lead-Acid Batteries

Lead-acid batteries are most common in PV systems in general and sealed lead acid batteries are
most commonly used in grid-connected systems. Sealed batteries are spill-proof and do not
require periodic maintenance. Flooded lead acid batteries are usually the least expensive but
require adding distilled water at least monthly to replenish water lost during the normal charging
process.

There are two types of sealed lead acid batteries: sealed absorbent glass mat (AGM) and gel cell.
AGM lead-acid batteries have become the industry standard, as they are maintenance free and
particularly suited for grid-tied systems where batteries are typically kept at a full state of charge.
Gel-cell batteries, designed for freeze-resistance, are generally a poor choice because any
overcharging will permanently damage the battery.

2.7.2. Alkaline Batteries

Because of their relatively high cost, alkaline batteries are only recommended where extremely
cold temperatures (-50 F or less) are anticipated or for certain commercial or industrial

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applications requiring their advantages over lead-acid batteries. These advantages include
tolerance of freezing or high temperatures, low maintenance requirements, and the ability to be
fully discharged or over-charged without harm.

Sizing Battery Banks; For grid-connected systems, batteries are usually sized for relatively
short time periods with eight hours being typical. Size may vary, however, depending on the
particular needs of a facility and the length of power outages expected. For comparison, battery
banks for off-grid systems are usually sized for one to three cloudy days.

Interaction with Solar Modules; The solar array must have a higher voltage than the battery
bank in order to fully charge the batteries. For systems with battery back-up, pay particular
attention to the rated voltage of the module, also called the maximum power point (Vmpp), in the
electrical specifications. It is important that the voltage is high enough relative to the voltage of a
fully charged battery. For example, rated voltages between 16.5V and 17.5V are typical for a
12V system using liquid lead-acid batteries. Higher voltages may be required for long wiring
distances between the modules and the charge controller and battery bank.

Days of Autonomy; Autonomy refers to the number of days a battery system will provide a
given load without being recharged by the photovoltaic array. Correctly selecting a number of
days will depend on the system, its location, its total load and the nature of the system’s load.
Weather conditions determine the number of no sun days which may be the most significant
variable in determining autonomy.

2.8. Charge Controller

A charge controller, sometimes referred to as a photovoltaic controller or battery charger, is only
necessary in systems with battery back-up. The primary function of a charge controller is to
prevent overcharging of the batteries. The controller must not only be able to handle typical or
rated voltages and currents, but must also be sized to handle expected peak or surge conditions
from the PV array or required by the electrical loads that may be connected to the controller. It is
extremely important that the controller be adequately sized for the intended application. If an
undersized controller is used and fails during operation, the costs of service and replacement will
be higher than what would have been spent on a controller that was initially oversized for the
application.. The size of a controller is determined by multiplying the peak rated current from the

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module by the modules or strings in parallel. To be conservative, the short-circuit current (Isc) is
generally used.

To specify the controller the ‘Module Short Circuit Current’ is multiplied by ‘Modules in
parallel.’ The result is the Maximum array amps the controller would encounter under short
circuit condition. Charge controllers should be sized according to the voltages and currents
expected during operation of the PV system.
The primary function of a charge controller is to prevent overcharging of the batteries. Most also
include a low voltage disconnect that prevents over-discharging batteries. In addition, charge
controllers prevent charge from draining back to solar modules at night. Some modern charge
controllers incorporate maximum power point tracking, which optimizes the PV array’s output,
increasing the energy it produces.

2.8.1. Types of Charge Controllers

There are essentially two types of controllers: shunt and series.

A. Shunt controller; bypasses current around fully charged batteries and through a power
transistor or resistance heater where excess power is converted into heat. Shunt
controllers are simple and inexpensive, but are only designed for very small systems
producing 40 amperes or less.

Fig 2.9: shunt controller

B. Series controllers; stop the flow of current by opening the circuit between the battery and
the PV array. Series controllers may be single-stage or pulse type. Single-stage
controllers are small and inexpensive and have a greater load-handling capacity than
shunt-type controllers. Pulse controllers and a type of shunt controller referred to as a

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 multi-stage controller (e.g., three-stage controller) has routines that optimize battery
charging rates to extend battery life. Most charge controllers are now three-stage
controllers. These chargers have dramatically improved battery life.

Charge controllers are selected based on:

 PV array voltage; The controller’s DC voltage input must match the nominal
voltage of the solar array.
 PV array current; The controller must be sized to handle the maximum current
produced by the PV array.

Fig 2.10: Series controller

2.9. Switches

A switch is a device which is designed to interrupt the current flow in a circuit, in other words, it
can make or break an electrical circuit. Every electrical and electronics application uses at least
one switch to perform ON and OFF operation of the device. So the switches are the part of a
control system and without it, control operation cannot be achieved. A switch can perform two
functions, namely fully ON (by closing its contacts) or fully OFF (by opening its contacts).
When the contacts of a switch are closed, the switch creates the closed path for current flow and
hence load consumes the power from source. When the contacts of a switch are open, no power
will be consumed by the load.

2.9.1. Types of Switches

Mechanical switches can be classified into different types based on several factors such as
method of actuation (manual, limit and process switches), number of contacts (single contact and
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multi contact switches), number of poles and throws (SPST, DPDT, SPDT, etc); operation and
construction (push button, rotary, etc) etc.

2.9.1.1. Single Pole Single Throw Switch (SPST)

This is the basic ON and OFF switch consisting of one input contact and one output Contact. It
switches a single circuit and it can either make (ON) or break (OFF) the load.
The contacts of SPST can be either normally open or normally closed configurations.

Figure; SPST swich

2.9.1.2. Single Pole Double Throw Switch (SPDT)

This switch has three terminals, one is input contact and remaining two are output contacts. This
means it consist two ON positions and one OFF position. In most of the circuits, these switches
are used as changeover to connect the input between two choices of outputs. The contact which
is connected to the input by default is referred as normally closed contact and contact which will
be connected during ON operation is a normally open.

Figure; SPDT

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2.9.1.3. Double Pole Single Throw Switch (DPST)
This switch consists of four terminals, two input contacts and two output contacts. It behaves like
a two separate SPST configurations, operating at the same time. It has only one ON position, but
it can actuate the two contacts simultaneously, such that each input contact will be connected to
its corresponding output contact.

In OFF position both switches are at open state. This type of switches is used for controlling two
different circuits at a time. Also, the contacts of this switch may be either normally open or
normally closed configurations.

Figure ; DPST

2.10. Fans
Fan is an essential component of almost all heating and air conditioning systems. Moisture
removal mechanisms used for the drying of leftover foods in a short time. These mechanisms
are based on the existence temperature gradient or pressure gradient between the atmospheric air
and the exit of the dry air from the fan. Drying food using solar and fans to force air circulation
rely on pressure gradient between the entry and the exit of the dry air from the fan.

2.10.1 Fan types

Depending on drive power and airflow, fans can be categorized in the following way.
Categorization by drive power separates AC fans which operate on alternating current (utility
power) and DC fans which operate on direct current. (This report gives an explanation on DC
fans).Categorization by airflow broadly separates fans into axial flow fans or centrifugal fans.

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 Table 2.2: fan types

In recent years there has been an increase in axial flow fans with high static pressure due to the
benefits of high speed drive in accordance with higher motor performance and a transition to
counter rotation. This has led to increased usage of axial flow fans on equipment with large
ventilation resistance due to high mounting density.

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 CHAPTER THREE

CONCEPT GENERATION FOR SOLAR DRYER

Concept 1

This concept is concerned on the open sun dryer; products are generally spread on the ground,
mat, cement floor where they receive short wavelength solar energy during a major part of the
day and natural air circulation. Some amount of the energy is reflected back and the remaining is
absorbed by the surface depending upon the colour of the products. The absorbed radiation is
converted into thermal energy and the temperature of the product starts to increase and becomes
dried.

Concept 2

This concept is concerned on indirect solar dryer, the products are located in trays or shelves
inside an opaque drying cabinet and a separate unit termed as solar collector is used for heating
of the entering air into the cabinet. The heated air is allowed to flow through the wet products
that provides the heat for moisture evaporation by convective heat transfer between the hot air
and the wet products. Drying takes place due to the difference in moisture concentration between
the drying air and the air in the vicinity of product surface.

Concept 3
This concept is concerned on direct (Greenhouse) solar dryer, consists of the drying chamber
covered by a transparent material that is glass and air is entering into the drying chamber from
the atmosphere and escaping through exit of the dryer. Solar radiation impinging on the glass
cover and some part is reflected back to atmosphere and the remaining is transmitted inside the
drying chamber. A part of the transmitted radiation is then reflected back from the product
surface and the rest is absorbed by the surface of the product which causes its temperature to

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increase and there by emit long wavelength radiations which are not allowed to escape to
atmosphere due to the glass cover.This allows solar radiation into the chamber to heat up and
increase the temperature of the air and the product being dried.

3.2. Design matrix

Design matrix is a method used to compare and contrast different alternative concepts or
mechanisms by using different factors/criteria, so that it is easy to select the most suitable and
effective one. Thus by using the following criteria the following measurement weights are
given. Excellent – 4 , Very good – 3 ,Good – 2 ,Poor – 1.

Concept selection
Selection criteria concept 1 concept 2 concept 3
Drying time - 0 +
Simplicity of structure + - 0
Loading capacity + 0 +
Low contamination of items - + +
Low cost + 0 -
Efficiency - + +
Number of plus 3 2 4
Number of normal condition 1 3 1
Number of minus 3 1 1
Net 0 1 3
Rank 3 2 1
continue? No Yes Yes

Tabel 3.1 Concept selection.

Concept scoring
Selection criteria Weight Rating Weighted Rating Weighted Score
Score
Loading capacity 35% 2 0.7 4 1.4
Efficiency 20% 3 0.6 4 0.8
Drying time 15% 3 0.45 4 0.6
Low contamination of 10% 4 0.4 3 0.3
items
Low cost 7% 4 0.28 2 0.14
Simplicity of structure 3% 2 0.06 4 0.12

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Total score 2.49 3.36

Rank 2 1
Continue? NO Develop

Tabel 3.2 Concept scoring

3.3 Selection of the Suitable One

After computing all the concepts using the given criteria through the above design matrix out of
4 points, concept-3 has the best value with 3.36 points. Because it is supper loading
capacity,highest efficency,best for protection of the leftover foods from microrganism and low
drying time. At the next chapter concept 3 is going to develop its design analysis and detail
drawings ( main part drawings and assembly drawings).

3.4 Main Components of the Selected (Greenhouse) Solar Dryers

Generally, Greenhouse solar dryer has following parts;
1. Solar Panel (PV cell): This panel is the source of the heat energy that absorbs the heat
and converts light energy into electrical energy and uses to rotate the fans.
2. Air Inlet: This is the opening through which air enters in and it is heated by the black
painted concrete floors.
3. Drying Chamber: This is a tray that placed leftover Injera to be dry.
4. Air Outlet: This is the exit of the moist air and removed by using fans.
5. Fans: uses to suck out the moist air from the dryer and drives by using photovoltaic
(PV) module cells.
6. Transparent Glass: uses to cover for the drying chamber and preventing dust and rain
from the atmospheres. It permits the solar radiation into the dryers but resists the flow of
heat energy out of the dryers.
7. Absorber: This is black painted concrete floors and absorbs the incident solar radiation
transmitted by glass and heating the air between black painted concrete floors and glass.

3.5 Working Principle of Greenhouse Solar Dryer

Greenhouse type solar dryer consists of even span structure made of glass with a blacked
concrete floor. All sides of the dryers are covered with glass in order to create the greenhouse

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effect inside the dryer. The front side wall of the dryer has one door for inlet of the wet leftover
foods and to be dry are placed on a two thin layer of trays and two air inlets in both right and left
side of the dryer. The rear side wall of the dryer has one door for outlet of the dried leftover and
air outlets are at top side forced by six fans. Six DC fans operated by 324W solar cell modules
were installed in the right side to suck out moist air from the inside of the dryer to the
surrounding environment. The dryer is oriented in the north-south direction.Solar radiation
passing through the glass roof heats the air, the leftover foods inside the dryer, as well as the
blacked concrete floor. Ambient air is drawn in through the two air inlets at the bottom of the
both side of the dryer and heated by the blacked concrete floor and the leftover foods exposed to
solar radiation. The heated air, while passing through and over the leftover foods absorbs
moisture from the leftover foods. Direct exposure to solar radiation of the leftover foods and the
heated drying air enhance the drying rate of the leftover foods. Moist air is sucked from the dryer
by the six DC-fans at the top of the side of the dryer, as the result the leftover foods will be dried.

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Reference
[1] Nandi P. Solar Thermal Energy Utilization in Food Processing Industry in India. Journal of
Science and Technology 2009.

[2] Sharma, V.K., Sharma, S., Ray, R.A., Garg H.P., Design and performance of a dryer
suitable for rural applications. Energy Conversion and Management Vol 26.

[3] James P. Dunlop, ‘Batteries and Charge Control in Stand-Alone Photovoltaic Systems
Fundamentals and Application’

[4] Stand-Alone Photovoltaic Systems – ‘A Handbook of Recommended Design Practices’

Sandia National Laboratories, SAND87-7023, revised November 1991.

[5] con.2merkato.com may, 1, 2022

[6] http://www.ijritcc.org, and also http://www.jetir.org

[7],[8] https:// www.researchgate.net

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