Investigation on indirect natural convection solar drying of anti‐diabetic medicinal products
2019
Abi Mathew, Adarsh | Thangavel, Venugopal
A performance analysis of indirect natural convection solar dryer (INCSD) was carried out by drying anti‐diabetic medicinal products like coccinia grandis, allium cepa, and emblica officinalis by cutting into different orientations. Drying results shows that thickness, orientation of cut, and surface area plays a vital role in the drying characteristics of the products in INCSD. The average collector and dryer efficiency of INCSD was 15% and 7%, respectively. Drying time was reduced up to 11 hr in INCSD than open sun drying. Alpha amylase inhibition assay values for products dried under open sun (15.67%, 5.89%, and 8.56%) showed better results, whereas minerals like potassium content in allium cepa (597 mg/100 g), sodium content in coccinia grandis (130.1 mg/100 g), magnesium content in allium cepa, and emblica officinalis (80 mg/100 g) were higher when dried in INCSD. Vitamin C and sugar content in products were almost same for both INCSD and open sun drying. Practical applications Indirect natural convection solar dryers are mainly benefited by small‐scale farmers as it takes less drying time and possess better quality when compared to open sun drying. Drying anti‐diabetic medicinal products in INCSD can be considered as a boon for pharmaceutical industries as the dryer can give good‐quality dried products that can be used for preparing anti‐diabetic medicines. It can also reduce the production cost of anti‐diabetic medicines.
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