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Article
Field Testing of a New Variable Heat Low Temperature In-Bin Drying Control Strategy
Applied Engineering in Agriculture (2005)
  • Ricardo E. Bartosik, Purdue University
  • Dirk E. Maier, Purdue University
Abstract
During the 2001 and 2002 drying seasons a new variable heat (VH) in-bin low temperature drying strategy was implemented for drying corn in farm bins. In these field tests, the VH control strategy was able to select the correct operating hours based on prescribed air equilibrium moisture content (EMC) criteria with a high level of accuracy. When the ambient conditions were too wet for drying, the VH strategy was able to add the minimum amount of heat to the drying air in order to reduce the air EMC in the plenum to the desired level. The VH control strategy successfully minimized the overdrying of the grain bottom layers while drying the wet upper layers of corn, while the simultaneously operating continuous natural air (CNA) strategy overdried the bottom layers of corn by up to 2.2 percentage points before weather conditions became sufficiently wet to recondition the corn to a final moisture content similar to the VH strategy. The stress crack level did not change during the VH and CNA drying experiments.
Keywords
  • Natural air/low temperature drying,
  • Variable heat strategy,
  • Corn,
  • Drying controller
Publication Date
2005
DOI
10.13031/2013.18440
Publisher Statement
Copyright 2005 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. Used with permission.
Citation Information
Ricardo E. Bartosik and Dirk E. Maier. "Field Testing of a New Variable Heat Low Temperature In-Bin Drying Control Strategy" Applied Engineering in Agriculture Vol. 21 Iss. 3 (2005) p. 445 - 453 ISSN: 0883-8542
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/dirk-maier/17/