Cacao roasting in rural areas of Peru using concentrated solar thermal energy: experimental results

Abstract

Solar food processing is gaining interest for income generation. Our solar cacao roaster, designed for rural areas, consists in a horizontal rotating drum, opened at one end to collect solar radiation from Scheffler concentrators of 2.7 or 8 m2. The experimental results presented bring knowledge on the system's behavior and optimal operation. The influence of the most significant parameters is studied: quantity of cacao, absorptivity of drum's coating, thermal insulation, inclination and rotational speed of the drum. Cacao temperature and direct solar irradiance are monitored to evaluate the performance in roasting time per kilogram of cacao.