A Heat Transfer Model to Predict Temperature Distribution in Stored Wheat

Abstract

The combined convective and conductive heat transfer model which previously developed by Abbouda er al. (1992) was applied in this study to simulate the temperatures of wheat grain during storage process using input data of initial grain temperatures, ambient air temperatures, wind speeds and thermal properties of grain, bin structure and soil. The local weather data used in the model were obtained from the meteorological station of King Faisal University at Al-Ahsa Province of Saudi Arabia. Experimental data showed that, bin size and initial moisture content affected the grain temperature differences between the top surface and the bottom of the bin. The average grain temperature followed the trend of the ambient air temperature with a time delay. Predicted and measured grain temperatures were in close agreement for a test period of one year. Results indicated that the model and the parameter values used in the model are applicable for predicting temperature of stored wheat under static storage conditions.