Detaching of Saffron Flower Parts Based on Aerodynamic Properties

摘要

Saffron crocus, Crocus sativus, a bulbous perennial of the iris family (Iridaceae) treasured for its golden-color, pungent stigmas which are dried and used to flavor and color foods as a dyer. Saffron harvesting is traditionally carried out by hands and it consequently has increased the saffron's production cost. The aim of this study is to study and develop an automotive machine to separate stigma from the other parts of saffron flower to increase the level of automation and efficiency of the post-harvest operations. A prototype separator was designed based on saffron aerodynamic properties in order to study the effect of air flow speed on the saffron separation. According to the experiments result, 100% of petals drive out from the outlet D and 63% of stigma and anther can be separated. Meanwhile the maximum number of stigma discharged from outlet B at the air speed of 4 (m/s).