Design and Experiment of Double Roller Dried Pepper Pedicel Removal Device

Abstract

Aiming at the problems such as big damage to pepper and unclean removal of pepper pedicel that exist in the mechanised pedicel removal of pepper, the design of a double roller dried pepper pedicel removal device was introduced, taking into consideration of the physical and mechanical properties of pepper and the requirements of mechanized processing. The key components of the device included three parts: drum, pedicel removal roller and screen mesh, using rotating drum and rotating roller to achieve pepper pedicel removal. The process and working principle of the pedicel removal mechanism were thoroughly analyzed to determine the critical conditions for pedicel removal of pepper. Through parameter design and mechanical analysis, optimal specifications were determined. The roller’s diameter was set at 1.8m, with a length of 6.0m and a rotational speed of 28.83r/min. The pedicel removal roller, on the other hand, had a diameter of 36.0mm, a clearance of 0.5mm, and a rotational speed of 134.21r/min. A square screen with high screening efficiency was selected based on its screen surface utilization factor, which was determined to be 60.5%. Through the Design-Expert 12 software for experimental design and data processing, the influence of drum speed and pedicel removal roller speed on the damage rate and cleaning rate was clarified, and the optimal parameter combinations were determined to provide theoretical basis for the research and development of pepper mechanized processing technology and equipment. Subsequent pepper pedicel removal tests were conducted, and the results demonstrated that under the test conditions, the device achieved a damage rate of 0.6% and a cleaning rate of 98.8%. These results met industry standards and fulfilled the requirements for pepper processing.

Keywords: dried pepper, double roller mode, pedicel removal roller, screen mesh