Design, Development, and Performance Evaluation of Cassava Peeler

Abstract

Cassava (Manihot Esculenta) Is One Of The Most Important Tuber Crops That Constitute A Considerable Portion Of The Daily Diet Of The Peoples In Southern, Southwestern, Eastern, And Northwestern Parts Of Ethiopia. Currently, The Plant Is Being Distributed Throughout The Country As A Tool To Tackle Food Insecurity. This Is Because Cassava Grows Well In An Area Characterized By Low Rainfall And Less Fertile Soil. However, To Change Cassava Tubers To Shelf-Stable Food Staff There Is A Set Of Unit Operations That Must Have To Be Performed, Of Which, Cassava Peeling Is The One Rather Difficult Or Risky To Carryout Manually. Manual Peeling Is Characterized By Low Output, Labor-Intensive, And Backbreaking Activity Usually Undertaken By Women And Children. In Line With This, The Newly Harvested Cassava Tubers Should Have To Be Processed Within Two Days That Is Difficult To Accomplish Manually For Mass Production. The Objective Of This Study Was To Design, Develop And Evaluate The Performance Of An Electrical Motor-Operated Cassava Peeler. A 1hp Single-Phase Electrical Motor Was Used To Rotate A 30mm Diameter Shaft Which Was Rigidly Fixed To The Cylindrical Peeling Drum Being Mounted On The Frame Made Of 40 Hollow Square Sections. The Power Of The Motor Was Transferred To The Peeling Unit Using A Belt And Pulley. The Speed Of The Motor Was Reduced Using Speed Reduction Gear Having A Speed Reduction Ratio Of 50:1. The Drum Was Made Of Perforated Stainless Steel Sheet Metal To Have A Total Volume Of 1.11 10-1M.320%, 15%, And 10% Of The Volume Of The Drum Was Occupied By15kg, 10kg, And 7.5kg Of Cassava Tuber Respectively And It Was Rotated At 60rpm And 30rpm For 7 Minutes. Parameters Such As Peeling Efficiency, Percentage Flesh Loss, And Throughput Capacity Were Used To Evaluate The Machine Performance. Randomized Block Design At Two Levels Of Drum Speed And Three Levels Of Percentage Drum Fill Was Used To Test The Machine And Collected Data Were Analyzed Using Spss Statistical Software. For 7 Minutes Of Peeling Operation, The Force Required To Peel Cassava Was 0.16n, The Torque Due To Load On The Drum Was 0.04nm, And The Power Required To Drive The Drum Was 0.25w. The Developed Cassava Peeling Machine Has A Peeling Efficiency Of 82.83%, Percentage Flesh Loss Of 4.03%, And Throughput Put Capacity Of 120kghr-1 When The Drum Was Filled 20% And Rotated At 60 Revolutions Per Minute. Therefore, The Analyses Of Results And Cost-Benefit Ratio Of 1:4.85 Confirmed That The Electrical Motor-Operated Cassava Peeling Machine Is Highly Economical And Safe To Be Used By The Local Cassava Producers And Consumers.