Drying characteristics of oil palm kernels

The drying characteristics of a single oil palm kernel suspended in a drying tunnel is studied. Luikov's unsteady state simultaneous heat and mass transport equations are proposed as the governing equations. The model is simulated using the explicit and modified implicit Crank Nicholson finite difference algorithms. The desorption isotherms of the kernel was determined using an environmental chamber and the data generated was found to fit the Hasley's and Henderson's equations well. The mass diffusion coefficient was determined by using a distributed system parameter identification technique where a weighted least square criterion between model and experimental average moisture content and temperature profiles is optimized using the Lagrangian algorithm within the constraints of the governing equations. The simulated parameter estimated drying characteristics were found to be in good agreement with experimental values.