Examples of mechanical dryers

Many mechanical dryers have been developed for rice but only very few did get commercialized successfully. This page provides some information about some dryers that became popular in Southeast Asia. It does not constitute a comprehensive overview of all possible drying technologies. The dryers featured here are not necessarily the best technical solution but, because the users accept them, they seem to offer a good compromise between drying cost and benefits in terms of higher quality and weather risk avoidance in their specific settings.

Overview on commercially available dryers

Target groupDryerDescription
Farm level

 

low-cost-dryer

Low Cost Dryer (SRR and STR dryers)

Country: Vietnam
Source: Nong Lam University (NLU), Ho Chi Minh City
Capacity: 1t
Drying time: 2 days
Cost: US$ 100 (1997)
Installed units in 2009: more than 1,400

Contact: NLU

solar-bubble-dryer-farm-level

Solar Bubble Dryer (SBD)

Joint development, IRRI, GrainPro, University of Hohenheim
Source: GrainPro Inc., Philippines
Capacity: 0.5t, 1t
Drying time: 1-2 days
Cost: US$ 1,000-2,000
Sold units in 2015: 50

Contact: GrainPro, IRRI

Drying contract service provider

Small to medium rice mills
 vietnamese-flat-bed-dryer

Vietnamese Flat Bed Dryer

Country: Vietnam
Source: Nong Lam University, Ho Chi Minh City
Capacity: 4-20t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1-1.5%/h
Cost: US$ 1,500 (2009)
Installed units in 2009: more than 6,000

Contact:NLU

 vietnamese-reversible-airflow-flatbed-dryer

Vietnamese Reversible Airflow Flat Bed Dryer

Country: Vietnam
Source: Nong Lam University, Ho Chi Minh City
Capacity: 4-20t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1-1.5%/h
Cost: inquire
Installed units: most new installations

Contact:NLU

 maligaya-flatbed-dryer

Maligaya Flat Bed Dryer

Country: Philippines
Source: NLU - PhilRice cooperation
Capacity: 4t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1/1-5%/h

Contact: PhilRice

 philrice-reversible-airflow-flatbed-dryer

PhilRice Reversible Airflow Flat Bed Dryer

Country: Philippines
Source: NLU - PhilRice cooperation
Capacity: 4-6t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1/1-5%/h

Contact: PhilRice

 cambodian-flatbed-dryer

Cambodian Flat Bed Dryer

Source: NLU, Vietnam through IRRC
Capacity: 4t
Drying time: 6-8h
Installed units until 2009: 7
Installed units until 2012: more than 100

Contact: MAFF

 myanmar-4t-flat-bed-dryer

Myanmar 4t Flat Bed Dryer

Source: NLU, Vietnam through IRRC
Capacity: 4t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1-1.5%/h
Installed units until 2009: 7
Installed units until 2012: more than 350

Contact: Pioneer Postharvest Development Group

 myanmar-1-3t-flat-bed-dryer

Myanmar 1-3t Flat Bed Dryer

Source: Pioneer Postharvest Development Group
Capacity: 1-3t
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1-1.5%/h
Installed units: A few, mostly for demonstration

Contact: Pioneer Postharvest Development Group

 indonesian-box-dryer

Indonesian Box Dryer

Source: ICRR, Sukamandi
Capacity: 3.3t
Drying time: 6-8h
Installed units until 2009: 200

Contact: Indonesian Center for Rice Research, Sukamandi BPTP South Sumatra: Budi Rahario

Large rice mills and processors  commercial-re-circulating-batch-dryer

Commercial Re-circulating Batch Dryer

Source: Various companies
Capacity: 4-20t/batch
Drying time: 6-8h
Drying rate: 1-1.5%/h
These dryers are available from different sources IRRI assisted in the development in Vietnam and Cambodia

Small seed dryers  irri-flatbed-dryer-small-seed-dryers

IRRI Flat Bed Dryer

Source: IRRI
Capacity: 1t
Drying time: 6-8h
Note: This is a design from the 1970s. Thousands of units were installed over the years but the design is outdated. It can still be used for drying seeds or demonstation purposes since it can be made portable.

Contact: postharvest@irri.org

 irri-seed-dryer-small-seed-dryer

IRRI Seed Dryer

Source: IRRI, based on the Vietnamese SRR dryer
Capacity: 200 kg
Drying time: 12-24h
Note: This is a prototype seed dryer for very small seed samples. The IRRI design uses a rice husk stove as heat source but that is very labor intensive. A coal stove using brickets is more appropriate.

Contact: postharvest@irri.org