Psychrometric Grain Drying Evaporation

Agricultural Engineering

How It Works

Post-harvest grain drying relies on simultaneous sensible heat transfer and latent mass transfer across the crop boundary layer. Heated ambient air lowers the local relative humidity, creating a vapor pressure deficit between the moist grain kernel surface and the drying air stream. Psychrometric state paths along wet-bulb lines dictate the drying rate and moisture equilibrium.

Governing Equation
ṁ_v = h_m · A · (ρ_v,s - ρ_v,∞)  |  q = ṁ_v · h_fg