Conceptual design of a process plant for the production of plantain flour

Abstract

Plantain has become an essential source of food in the Nigerian market today and to this effect, it is fast becoming a sought after fruit, especially for persons diagnosed with diabetics. Being a perishable fruit, plantain is usually processed into flour to extend its shelf life. Hence, there is a need to improve on the quantity and quality of the flour produced from it. This paper presents the conceptual design of a process plant for plantain flour production from green plantain pulp. The process plant consists of washing, slicing, drying, milling and sieving machines. The design analysis of constituent machines and its performance evaluation were carried out using SolidWorks and other appropriate design equations. The designed process plant was simulated to ensure its functionality. The results of its performance were analyzed and estimated cost of production presented.

Design and finite element method based structural analysis of a pet bottles-to-plastic flakes recycling plant

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Development and Performance Evaluation of a Pulverizer for Plantain Flour Process Plant

“…Plantain is usually processed into flour and other storable or value-added products due to its perishable nature and to ease transportation from one location to another for commercial purposes (Olutomilola and Omoaka, 2018;Olutomilola et al, 2020). The alarming postharvest losses of plantain, increasing market demand for plantain and its byproducts, and being the fourth most important crop on earth (Olutomilola et al, 2021;Alonso-Gomez et al, 2020), necessitated that a plant be developed in Nigeria for processing the crop into flour (Ayodeji, 2016). The process plant should consist of different units that will handle all the processes involved in processing unripe plantain into flour, one of which is a size reduction or pulverizing unit.…”

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