Experimental Investigation of the Drying Characteristics of Tapioca Under Solar Drying Condition

Abstract

Agricultural products are subjected to one form of processing or the other, to either improve the shelf life of the products, or as a necessary condition before consumption. Solar drying is one method that helps to increase the shelf life of agricultural products. In this study, an experimental investigation of the drying characteristics of cassava chips popularly called tapioca was carried out for the purpose of improved shelf life and hygiene, under solar drying conditions in the month of December, 2023. An analysis of key parameters was conducted on the experimental data and post-processed in the Microsoft Excel environment. The results suggested that the moisture removal rate of tapioca was 0.2183 % to 6.3829% on dry mass basis, with cumulative drying time of 27hours in three days. The maximum and minimum energy values during the drying period were 15485.14kJ and 9.6243kJ, respectively. Thus, the average value obtained for solar collector efficiency varied from 6.99 % to 16.89 %. The study also established that the colour and texture of the tapioca under the drying conditions could be retained.