Abstract Areca nut has to be processed in dry condition by peeling the outer shell completely. Peeling of Areca nut is very difficult by hand. However it is being done manually by using a sharp knife with a production rate of 3kg/hr. So it is essential to develop an agri-machine which will increase the production rate and safety to labourers. Presently there are few machines available but these machines are not suitable for variety of sizes of Areca nut which leads into the insufficient removal of outer shell of Areca nut. Therefore there is enough scope to develop a agri-machine suitable for variety of sizes of Areca nut which will overcome these problems. The present reserch work emphasizes on developing an Areca nut Dehusking agri-machine for three different sizes of Areca nut. The concept is to shear-off the husk of the dry Areca nut by shearing force. The features a Dehusking mechanism, and a power drive. The experiments were conducted by changing the blades, and selecting the best method. The first experiment were conducted by mounting set of two cutters separated by spacers for each size of Areca nut, then the set of two cutters were replaced by single cutters and the results of both the experiments were compared and concluded that the single cutters were more efficient than the set of two cutters in Dehusking the Areca nut.
Key Words: Arecanut, Peeling, Dehusking, Agri-machine, cutters.
I. INTRODUCTION
Areca nut is an important commercial crop in India. An Areca nut is the seed of the Areca nut palm. It plays a prominent role in the social, cultural functions, religious and and economic life of people in India. The income produce is the fruit called “betel nut” and is used mainly for masticatory purposes. These Areca nut has uses in ayurvedic and veterinary medicines. And it is estimated that nearly ten million people depend on Areca nut industry for their livelihood in India. The quality, variety and types of Areca nut vary from one place to another. The Areca nut palms grow under a variety of climatic and soil conditions. This Areca nut palm grows well from almost sea level up to an altitude of 1000 m in areas of abundant and well-distributed rainfall or under irrigated conditions. While fresh, the husk is green and the nut inside is so soft that it can easily be cut with an average knife. During the ripening of fruit the husk becomes yellow or orange and, as it dries, the fruit inside hardens to a wood-like consistency.[1-2]
1.1. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
There are two varieties of Areca nut, called White Supari and Red Supari. White variety supari is prepared by harvesting fully ripe Areca nut and by sun drying for 40 to 50 days. After drying the nut, the shell of the nut has to be removed by hand/machine. The nut derived