High Moisture Content Corn Sheller

Abstract

The prototype of peg-tooth type corn sheller was designed and constructed based on the study of existing shellers locally manufactured. The purpose was to make it applicable to shelling ear corn with grain moisture content up to 28 percent, while the ordinary shellers were applicable to grain with moisture level of under 20 percent only. And at present, the prototype had already been finished but the testing procedure was still undergo. Spike tooth was used in the prototype after evaluation and analysis of the work done in the project and in the past. From the test and the study of its performance, the spike tooth gave rather low damage rate. In the test, it yielded under 6 percent grain damage at 27.8 percent grain moisture content, with unshelled rate lower than 1 percent. Suitable tip speeds of the drum that yielded lowest damage rate were about 5.5 to 6.0 meters per sec. For open-type and 5.0 to 5.5 meters per sec. for closed –type drum. Similar results were expected for the prototype. However, the design was made so that, if the round peg tooth gave somewhat different result, the other designed square type would be immediately replaced.