Thermal Modeling of Solar Dryer — Numerical Simulation, Analysis and Performance Evaluation

Abstract

This work aims to establish a mathematical model for studying, describing and evaluating the thermal performance of a solar drying device. Therefore, in order to be able to test the theory by numerical simulation, it is necessary to have a model of the device and values of the realistic parameters. A model based on bond graphs methodology is developed to represent the critical energetic relations; thermal analysis of the solar dryer was investigated based on thermal balance equations to predict its performance and the mass transfer phenomena are mostly analyzed through the study of the drying kinetics. Comparison of the results with experimental data suggests the model is reasonable for sizing such a solar dryer.