A study on a novel system for soybean seeds drying: Performance and seed quality

Abstract

The proper choice of the dryer configuration for seeds drying is essential to preserve their quality during this process. Drying of soybean seeds was studied in this work using a non-conventional configuration of rotary dryer, named as roto-aerated dryer. The effects of temperature and velocity of the drying air on drying performance and on the capacity of germination and physical integrity of soybean seeds have been quantified. The results shown that this novel rotary dryer can be successfully used for seeds drying. The average residence time (between 22.2 and 24.9 min) was very short compared to other drying systems used for seeds. Conditions with appropriate drying performance and high quality of seeds have been identified.

Keywords:

• Soybean seeds
• roto-aerated dryer
• seed quality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The authors are thankful for the financial support of the Brazilian research funding agencies, the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES, grant process n° 88882.314733/2019-01)), the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), and the Research Support Foundation of the state of Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG).