DRYING OF KENAF (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) FORAGE FOR ANIMAL FEED

摘要

Kenaf, Hibiscus cannabinus L., is a member of the Malvaceae family and is related to cotton and okra. Kenaf is grown in many countries as an annual fiber crop and is introduced recently into the Malaysia agricultural sector. It grows quickly and can attain a height of 3.5 to 4.3 m in a growing season (4-5 months). One of the many uses of kenaf is the production of animal feed. The locally produced kenaf animal feed was found to be of good quality. Currently various equipment are being evaluated for the industrial processing of the feed. Drying is an important activity in the processing of kenaf forage for animal feed and also the single most expensive processing activity that may render the produce economically non-viable. The existing drying facilities based on RADIANT™ drying system at the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM), designed for drying various materials besides timber, was used to dry chopped kenaf. The material handling system was redesigned and fabricated to accommodate the chopped kenaf. This paper reports the results of drying trials conducted using the newly fabricated material handling system. The cost of energy consumption and the final moisture content of kenaf achievable using this dryer were discussed. The results indicated that the drying system could dry kenaf from green (84% moisture content, wet based) to about 10% moisture content.