Evaluation of a Cyber-Physical System with Fuzzy Control for Efficiency Optimization in Rotary Dryers: Real-Time Multivariate Monitoring of Humidity, Temperature, Air Velocity and Mass Loss

Precise control and monitoring systems are essential for efficient energy consumption in food dehydration. This study develops an applied cyber-physical control system to optimize food dehydration in rotary dryers, integrating fuzzy control algorithms through data acquisition. The system architecture utilizes DHT22 transducers for temperature monitoring, a DHT11 for humidity measurement, an IP65 anemometer for dryer wind speed detection, and a load cell weight tracking system, all connected to an Arduino Mega 2560 R3 microcontroller implementing the integrated fuzzy logic library. Experimental evaluations were performed with different carrot loads (1.5, 2.5, and 3.5 kg), demonstrating optimal performance at the initial load of 3.5 kg with an energy consumption of 11,589 kJ for 9.33 h, achieving a final moisture reduction of 10%. The 1.5 kg sample showed optimal dehydration kinetics at an average dryer hot air velocity of 1.5 m/s, while maximum efficiency (86%) was achieved with the 3.5 kg load, compared to 30% and 17% for the smaller batches. These results validate the integration of cyber-physical systems to optimize the dehydration rate (0.301 kg/h), thereby ensuring product quality in agro-industrial drying applications.