Design and Manufacture of a Groundnut Sheller

Abstract

Groundnut shelling is one of the important operations in the peanut harvesting process. Indeed, one of the major constraints in the groundnut production process in developing countries is the tedious task of shelling. It is with the aim of removing this constraint that a prototype groundnut sheller was produced including the dimensioning and design of all the constituent parts. The main components of the stripper are: The frame, the threshing machine, the concave, the fan and the motor. The nominal production capacity of the machine is 378 tons per year and per season with an electric power of 1.6 HP. The cost of the machine is US$ 475, affordable for small local producers. Finally, an economic profitability study of the machine was carried out and presented. It reveals a minimum production of 2.2 tons per year and per season to pay back the initial investment cost of the acquisition.