Engineering Properties of Groundnut for Designing a Battery-operated Decorticator

Design of groundnut decorticators needs a substantial knowledge of physical properties of groundnut, whose outcome will be an efficient decorticating machine. A properly designed groundnut decorticator will have less brokens and more whole kernels. Thus, it is necessary to study about the physical properties of groundnut before designing a groundnut decorticator. The important physical properties which effect the battery-operated groundnut decorticator were size (length and width) of kernels, size (length, width and thickness), 1000 pod mass, bulk density, angle of repose, moisture content and rupture force of groundnut pods. The size of kernels and groundnut pods were measured using a vernier caliper. It was observed that the average length of pod was 30.84, 28.02 and 36.80 mm, average width of pod was 12.01, 12.59 and 14.33 mm and average thickness of pod was 10.79, 10.91 and 14.31 mm for variety 1, 2 and 3 respectively. For varieties 1, 2 and 3, the average kernel length was 16.68, 19.28, and 18.70 mm and the average kernel width was 11.59, 9.080 and 8.00 mm respectively. The bulk density was determined by finding the mass/volume relationship. The bulk densities of groundnut pods were found to have an average value of 0.36, 0.35 and 0.26 g/cm3 for variety 1, 2, 3 respectively. The angle of repose was calculated by lifting a cylinder filled with groundnuts. The average angle of repose values for variety 1, 2 and 3 was 26.59°, 26.54° and 24.22°. The moisture content was determined using the oven method. The average values of moisture content were found to have 5.37%, 4.52% and 4.5% for variety 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Rupture force was calculated by using Texture Analyzer. The average rupture force for breaking shell of variety 1, 2 and 3 was 237.61 N, 231.01 N and 337.86 N. These values of physical properties will form a basis for designing a battery-operated groundnut decorticator.