Cassava Flour Dryer

A Project Study
Presented to the Faculty of the
College of Engineering
Laguna State Polytechnic University
Main Campus
Sta. Cruz, Laguna

In Partial Fulfilment
Of the Requirement for the Degree of
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering

JANE NOCHE ANDA

ROMNIELLE GALINA DELA RUEDA
JOHN JERWIN DELA CRUZ LAGUBANA
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Living in a third world country, people are more acquainted on

carbohydrates on their daily food intake. Some of their provinces still depend

on root crops as their staple food and source of living. One of the most known

root crops is Kamoteng Kahoy, also known as Cassava, internationally.

Cassava is the most important tropical root crops. It can therefore be

referred to as a multipurpose crop for man and livestock. It is also known to

be the highest producer of carbohydrates among staple crops and it is also

gluten free. The most common products of the processing industry are food,

chips, flour, and starch.

Kalayaan, Laguna is one of the local towns that produces Cassava and

also considers it as their local product. They also created a livelihood program

for the locals called CaSaLoNio, which stands for the municipality’s product

and barangay—Cassava, San Juan, Longos, and San Antonio. On the long

run, they are also hoping to produce their products internationally.

As of now, they are planning to build a tourist section beside the

municipal hall which will include Cassava product like Capunya (Cassava

Puto na may Pinya) and Cassava Chips. To increase the profit and to help

the neighborhood, they will reproduce creative products shown in every

Kamoteng Kahoy Festival to be sold in the town’s tourist section. It is

cultivated as an annual plant but it has also a short shelf life upon harvesting.

Due to this problem, the researchers proposed to add another product that

uses cassava flour as the main component.

Cassava flour is known on world trade as tapioca flour. It is the finer

fraction obtained from a whole series of processing operations such as,

milling operation, (sieving) operation. The unit processing of cassava includes

mainly on drying. Flour processing thus deserves serious attention in order to

meet the local demand for cassava products.

Drying is a method of dehydration of food products which means of

reducing the moisture content from the food to improve its shelf life by

preventing bacterial growth. In our country, local communities still stick with

the traditional sun drying. Even though it is the simplest way and most

economical especially in small volume production, the product produced it

have a lower quality due to the contamination of dusts, insects, rain, etc.

Drying it on the concrete and the direct exposure to ultraviolet rays from two

to three days makes the product low in quality and makes it go through color

change.

To increase the production’s efficiency and to open new markets for

cassava flour, the researchers are now introducing a Cassava Flour Dryer

that can help to procure this problem.

Theoretical Framework

A theoretical framework consists of concepts and, together with their

definitions and reference to relevant scholarly literature, existing theory that is

used for your particular study. It also helps the reader to make a logical sense

of relationships of variables and factors that will be mentioned afterwards

As Long and Sayma (2009), a convenient definition of heat transfer is

energy in motion due to temperature differences. Heat transfer extends the

thermodynamic analysis by studying the fundamental processes and modes

of heat transfer through the development of relations used to calculate its

rate.

Gonzalez (2015) Conduction transfers heat via direct molecular

collision. An area of greater kinetic energy will transfer thermal energy to an

area with lower kinetic energy. Higher-speed particles will collide with slower

speed particles. The slower-speed particles will increase in kinetic energy as

a result. Conduction is the most common form of heat transfer and occurs via

physical contact. But when a fluid, such as air or a liquid, is heated and then

travels away from the source, it carries the thermal energy along. This type of

heat transfer is called convection. The fluid above a hot surface expands,

becomes less dense, and rises. At the molecular level, the molecules expand

upon introduction of thermal energy.

The theory formulated can be used as a tool for manufacturing the said

project. The said two types of heat transfer will be used in the Cassava Flour
Dryer, using the convection by the hot air and conduction inside the container.

This will make the drying process more efficient.

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework is where the researcher listed their input,

process and output of the project study.

Designing of Machine

Fabrication

 Measuring
 Welding
Frame 1 Frame 3
Knowledge  Cutting
Requirement:
 Grinding
Machine Design
Heat Transfer
Testing
Material
Evaluation
Requirements:
Finalization
 Shaft
 Motor Frame 2
 Heater
 Insulator
 Fan and Blower
 Stainless Steel Sheet
 Belt and Pulley

Figure 1. Research Paradigm of the study

 Frame 1 presents the requirements in consulting the project study.

Knowledge in Machine Design and Heat Transfer were needed to make the

design of the project. The machine’s components of the prototype are also

enlisted as follows: speed reducer, insulator, motor, shaft, and stainless steel

sheet.

Frame 2 depicts the process of planning starting from designing,

fabrication that involves measuring, welding, cutting and grinding followed by

the finalization which includes testing and evaluation.

Frame 3 shows the final design of the Cassava Flour Dryer as a result

of the said input and processes.

Objectives of the Study

The main goal of this study is to design and develop a rotary dryer that

will help in the drying of ground cassava for making cassava flour.

This project study specifically aims to:

1. To determine the design components needed to develop the

Cassava Flour Dryer.

2. To test the performance of the Cassava Flour Dryer in terms of

a.) Drying time

b.) Drying Efficiency

c.) Moisture Removed

3. Determine the Break even.

Significance of the Study

The proponents envision that this study provides advantages and

various set of ideas to benefit the following:

Cassava Farmers

Having a convenient way to make use of cassava can create a larger

demand for them and may help them create a better income despite of the

cheap price on which root crops can be sold.

Community of Kalayaan, Laguna

Through the project study, towns like Kalayaan who uses cassava as

the main product can produce more interesting and wide variety of products

by using cassava flour Also, the municipality can also create another way to

produce an income to those who are willing to join their livelihood program in

regards of the product. .

Students/Researchers/Developers

This study provides further knowledge regarding machine design,

heat transfer and safe application of heat for food products.

Scope and limitations

The project study was entitled “Cassava Flour Dryer for Cassava Flour

Production”. In this section, information about drying will be discuss along

with the scope of the prototype as well as its limitation based on its

usefulness, design, and, capacity.

The prototype offers the user to dry grind cassava without sunlight

which consumes two to three days but with the electric heater, which will be

the heat source for drying the grind cassava. The prototype can dry 5kg of

grind cassava in four hours with a temperature of 60 C. The container is a

cylindrical drum that is made simple for cleaning, operating, and

maintenance. The design and mechanism of the machine is simple which can

be easily operated by other people.

The project prototype has its best quality features, but it also has some

limitations. The machine’s capacity cannot exceed to 10kg of grind cassava

per production due to temperature calculation and motor power.

Operational Definition of Terms

This following terms and concepts are defined operationally for further

understanding.

Controls. A device or mechanism installed to guide and regulate the

activities or operation of the Cassava Flour Dryer.

Insulator. It is a material placed in between the metal layers of the

container which allows little or no heat to escape on the dryer.

Electric Motor. It is an electrical machine that converts electrical

energy into mechanical energy. This will drive the flights of the agitator.
 Fan. It is a mechanism located at the right side of the dryer. It is used

to circulate air inside the cylindrical drum.

Food Safe Metal. These are metals that are considered safe to make

contact with food and it shall be used in the interior of the container.

Heating Element. It converts electrical energy into heat energy as the

heat source for the drying process.

Heat Sensor. It is a device located at the highest thermal point of the

dryer which designed to determine status of the materials thermal energy and

will control the thermal status inside the dryer.

Machine Design. It can be defined as the process by which resources

or energy is converted into useful mechanical forms, or the mechanisms so

as to obtain useful output from the Cassava Flour Dryer in the desired form

as per the needs of the human beings.

Ribbon Blades. These are the mixing element inside the dryer. It is

usually so constructed that the powder near the outside of the container is

moved in one direction, whereas in the middle it is moved in the opposite

direction.

Shaft. It is a component of a mechanical device that transmits rational

power from the motor to the blades for mixing the product inside the dryer.
 Speed Reducers. These are mechanical devices generally used to

reduce the input power source speed to achieve desired output speeds. It will

be used in prototype to acquire the required speed of the ribbon blades.