Solar Dehydration Project

Abstract

The purpose of the project is to demonstrate the commercial feasibility of adding value to local produce through solar dehydration. This project pursues the goal of using renewable and clean energy to create a sustainable income stream and jobs for Central Minnesota rural communities as well as making better use of produce which might otherwise be wasted. Dehydration has long been one of the most effective ways to preserve food and the project research aims to better understand this process at a commercial scale. Through extensive research and experimentation with three different dehydrators this project explores the feasibility of producing for market. We identified each dehydrator’s advantages and disadvantages and determined improvements to each design's efficiency. In addition, the project participants retain momentum for continued investigation and exploration of the project goals. The remaining report will include background of dehydration history, introduction of three dehydrators, drying process, data analysis, findings, conclusion and future works.