“Experimental Energy and Exergy Analysis Data of an LPG-Assisted Hybrid Drying System
Description
This dataset contains the experimental data used for the thermodynamic assessment of an LPG-assisted hybrid dryer operating under night-time drying conditions. The dataset includes drying parameters, temperature measurements, moisture content data, energy analysis results, exergy analysis results, LPG consumption, airflow conditions, and dryer performance indicators obtained during the experimental investigation. The data support the findings presented in the associated manuscript.
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Steps to reproduce
The dryer was tested in LPG mode during night-time operation from 19:00 to 06:00 in Mbeya, Tanzania, using 20 kg of podded beans. The experiment was conducted over three consecutive days, and the recorded data were averaged for analysis. The test was conducted in compliance with standards TZS 2253:2018 [29] and ISO 11520-1:1997 [30]. The burner, fan, and controller were operated so that the drying air remained in a low-temperature range, generally below 30 C, because the gas mode was intended to continue gentle overnight dehydration and humidity removal rather than impose a high-temperature daytime-like regime. The dryers were equipped with data-acquisition probes at the lower, middle, and upper sections of the combustion chamber, as well as at the air inlet and outlet, to capture data under different dryer conditions. The key parameters monitored were temperature, humidity, and air speed. Temperature, relative humidity, and airflow velocity were measured using calibrated temperature sensors, a digital humidity sensor, and a hand-held hot-wire anemometer, respectively. Batch mass loss and LPG consumption were measured before and after each experiment run, while temperature, relative humidity, and air speed were monitored during the test. The mass of gas consumed and moisture removed was measured using a precision weighing scale before and after the experiment. The difference in fuel mass accounted for LPG consumption, whereas the reduction in product mass quantified moisture removal from the initial 20 kg batch of bean pods. The LPG was supplied from a 6 kg cylinder conforming to Tanzanian Standard TZS 818:2021. The measured variables were used to evaluate moisture removal, useful energy transfer, thermal exergy, evaporation exergy, and exergy destruction
Institutions
- Mbeya University of Science and TechnologyMbeya, Mbeya