Hot air dryer machine for peanut

Thailand has 188,620 rai of land for grow peanut, Majority, Northern region such as Lampang, Nan, Payao, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, and Mae Hongson are the area for peanut cultivation. Lam pang province has 17,000 rai for peanut cultivation. In addition, there were 13 peanut shelling factories and merchandises who were registered which more than 80% of registration in Thailand. Therefore Lampang is the most appropriate province to study reduction of aflatoxin because there was completely supply chain of peanut production.

Researchers of RMUTL Lam pang had aware of developing effectiveness of storing peanut for aflatoxin reduction that appropriate to small and medium peanut shelling factories. Therefore, researchers and local enterprises had designed low cost humidity control storage and also invent hot air dryer machine for drying peanut in order to reducing aflatoxin after harvest peanut during raining season. Research project had cooperated with Mit Kaset Peanut factory, Tumbol Kuayphae, Aumphur Muang Lampang , Lampang Province.

Hot air dryer machine was an invention of Ajarn. Wichai Sinjak, Faculty of Engineering, RMUTL (Lampang).  Hot air dryer machine made of iron with the size of 2245 x 2245 x 1240 mm. which the grille high 400 mm from the iron easel by using 1 HP Electric Motor, 220 V and using the fan to blow hot air in to dryer machine with temperature control set.  Dryer machine using LPG as a firing which control temperature at 40-50 degree Celsius. Dryer machine capacity, machine can dry 500 kilogram which take 10 hours and using LPG 28 kilogram at a time.  Result of testing found that humidity reduction of peanut was 33.0 %wb and remaining humidity of peanut at 4.8 to 5.6 %wb. Result from lab test found that there was no aflatoxin in dried peanut.