Effect of pads and thickness of paddy on moisture removal under sun drying

Abstract

Background: Sun drying is a popular post-harvest operation to maintain rice quality during the storage period. Farmers use different pads and thicknesses for sun drying of paddy in Ampara district, Sri Lanka. A study was conducted to evaluate the suitability and effectiveness of the drying pad and thickness as practiced by local paddy farmers during the sun drying process. Methods: The grain with an initial moisture content of 28% (dry basis) was sun dried with four types of drying pads and five levels of thickness of grain. This experiment was conducted between 8.30 am and 4.30 pm at the South Eastern University of Sri Lanka in August 2020. The moisture contents of the grain were measured at regular time intervals. Result: It was found that the duration of drying of paddy from 28% to 13% moisture content on a dry basis was 300 to 540 minutes depending upon the drying pad and thickness. The tarpaulin is reasonable at shallow thickness with less time to reach the necessary moisture level than other drying pads. Black polythene and fertilizer bag can be utilized for sun drying of paddy at 4 cm thickness with 130 minutes. It was found that with an increase in the thickness of paddy from 0.5 cm to 4 cm, the drying time increases. A statistically significant interaction was obtained between drying pads and thickness level on moisture removal of paddy. Therefore, the moisture removal rate differs with the drying pad and thickness of the paddy under open sun drying.