Numerical Modeling of Air Flow in a Cabinet Dryer Equipped by Deflector Plates.

Roustapour, Omid Reza; Gazor, Hamid Reza; Farzin, Kazemi

In this study, air deflector plates were used in order to increase the air elapsed time in the chamber. The air flow pattern was simulated using computational fluid dynamics. The geometry of the chamber was produced in 2D and meshed by triangular and quadrilateral elements, boundary conditions were defined and the governing equations solved. Modeling of flow without any deflectors depicted the air flowed to the chamber conducted to the outlet without any distortion. Air vortices were generated when the deflectors defined in model. To evaluate the influence of deflectors on drying period, constructed plates installed in the dryer chamber and melon slices were dried when deflectors used or not. Simulation results showed magnitude of the air velocity was increased and temperature uniform distribution developed on the surface of trays. The outlet temperature was also decreased up to 10 % and drying time reduced to 22 % when the deflectors were employed.

AIR flow; COMPUTATIONAL fluid dynamics; TEMPERATURE distribution

International Journal of Food Engineering, 2019, Vol 15, Issue 9, pN.PAG

1556-3758

Academic Journal

10.1515/ijfe-2018-0341