Performance Evaluation of a Solar Assisted Dual Condenser Heat Pump System for Drying of Pandan Leaves (Pandanus Amaryllifolius)
The solar-assisted heat pump drying (SAHPD) system uniquely incorporates solar-heating refrigerant through hot water from solar evacuated tubes, offering distinct advantages. This study analyzed three experimental setups: a heat pump dryer (HPD) without solar assistance, SAHPD configuration 1 (C1-...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en |
| Published: |
Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
2025
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/26774/1/24.pdf http://journalarticle.ukm.my/26774/ https://www.ukm.my/jkukm/volume-3701-2025/ |
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| Summary: | The solar-assisted heat pump drying (SAHPD) system uniquely incorporates solar-heating refrigerant through hot
water from solar evacuated tubes, offering distinct advantages. This study analyzed three experimental setups: a heat
pump dryer (HPD) without solar assistance, SAHPD configuration 1 (C1-SAHPD) with solar-heated refrigerant at
the discharge line, and SAHPD configuration 2 (C2-SAHPD) with solar-heated refrigerant between condensers, both
for performance and economic viability. The experiments maintained consistent parameters, including 5.5 kg of
Pandan leaf (Pandanus amaryllifolius), an airfl ow rate of 0.135 kg/s, and a refrigerant operating pressure of 9.65
bar. The SAHPDs operated when the hot water temperature in the storage tank reached between 70°C and 90°C, with
a daily average radiation intensity ranging from 0.670 to 1.102 kW/m² for heating the water. The study revealed
average coefficients of performance (COPavg
) of 5.34, 5.43, and 6.53 for HPD, C1-SAHPD, and C2-SAHPD,
respectively. The specifi c moisture extraction rate (SMER) for HPD was 2.64, while C1-SAHPD and C2-SAHPD had
SMERs of 1.88 and 2.71 at solar fractions of 0.34 and 0.45, respectively. Notably, C2-SAHPD reduced electricity
consumption by 46%. The payback period for drying 11 kg of Pandan leaves per day was 4.56 months for HPD, 4.32
months for C1-SAHPD, and 3.84 months for C2-SAHPD. The study concluded that C2-SAHPD was the most
efficient dryer system for Pandan leaves based on its higher efficiency, SMER, and cost recovery. Additionally, the
performance optimization presented in this study contributed to developing a novel technique for classifying dryer
technologies. |
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