Abstract: The influence of operating parameters on the drying rate and energy
consumption of Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) has been experimentally evaluated in
this study. Tofu contained in the Petri dish was put in EHD system which was
made up of a wire pole and a plate pole. By changing the voltage, the electrode
spacing and the distance between the two neighboring wires, the factors related
to the drying rate and energy consumption were quantitatively studied. The
results indicate that when the distance between the wire electrodes and the
surface of the plate pole is constant, the drying rate increases linearly while
the drying energy consumption increases nonlinearly with the supplied voltage.
When the supplied voltage is not changed, the tofu drying rate and energy
consumption are changed with the distance between the two neighboring wires.
When the distance between the two neighboring wires is not changed, the tofu
drying rate and energy consumption are changed with the electrode spacing. When
the electrode spacing is 9 cm and the distance between the two neighboring
wires is 9 cm, the drying rate is the highest while the energy consumption is
relative least, 45 kV is the optimum value for drying voltage.
Keywords: Electrohydrodynamic (EHD), drying, drying rate, energy consumption, the distance between the two neighboring wires, the electrode spacing
