Enhancing the Drying Performance of Tendu Leaves Using a Solar Cabinet Dryer Integrated with Zigzag Type Air Heater

In this research, the thermodynamic analysis of a solar cabinet dryer was examined by drying tendu leaves using a zigzag air heater. The experiment was performed in the summer season at Bhubaneswar, India (20.2961°N, 85.8245°E). The main objective of this research is to reduce the drying time by increasing the rate of production. We have adopted rotation of tray approach to solve the problem of non-uniform drying. Supplementary baffles have also been added to the zigzag air heater to enhance surface area and smooth the air flow. The findings show that the necessary moisture content of the tendu leaves was attained in 4 h 40 min using the zigzag air heater, but it took 6 h using the flat plate air heater whereas it required more than 2–3 sunny days in open sun drying. According to the data, utilizing of zigzag air heater increased the average air heater output temperature by 3.87% while increasing the average exergy efficiency value by 11.69%. The average energy efficiency of the air heater and drying chamber was found to be 76.37 and 28.37% in case of zigzag air heater and 61.62 and 21.12% in case of flat plate air heater respectively. The total efficiency of the system was determined to be 16.32% when utilizing the zigzag air heater, but it was 15.55% when using a flat plate air heater.