Diseño con enfoque mecatrónico de un deshidratador híbrido: solar y eléctrico de pequeña capacidad, para el secado sustentable de café de baja altura : Diseño de un secador híbrido: solar (tipo indirecto) y eléctrico, con fuente auxiliar de almacenamiento térmico (PCM), para secar una pequeña cantidad de café de baja altura.

Abstract

The optimization of the dehydration process of low altitude coffee, especially Arabica coffee, is what is currently being developed to obtain a high quality coffee with lower production costs, so the innovation of drying methods and the design of new mechanisms that efficiently use the available energy resources are currently a priority for this field. The focus of this written work is to design a coffee dehydrator that takes advantage of and combines diverse renewable and clean energy sources, with an efficient management of them through mathematical modeling and thermodynamic analysis. It begins with the compilation of information and theoretical foundations involved in the dehydration of coffee. In the next stage the fundamental aspects such as dryer requirements and drying process considerations are analyzed. The design stage of the components is carried out with an analysis of parameters, selection of variables and the elaboration of a mathematical modeling for the simulation in the Matlab software in order to carry out an adequate dimensioning and distribution of elements. The thermal storage material proposed is paraffin wax, since previous studies have shown its efficiency for this type of applications. Finally, in the following section, an analysis of the results obtained is made in order to subsequently issue conclusions and recommendations for an extension or development of this design in the future.