Title: Development and performance evaluation of a pedal operated seed cleaner (POS cleaner)

Abstract

Traditional grain cleaning methods such as winnowing are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and inefficient. The commercially available mechanical seed cleaners are associated with high initial, maintenance, and operating costs. This created a need for an intermediate seed cleaning technology bridging between the traditional cleaning methods and mechanical cleaners. Therefore, a Pedal Operated Seed Cleaner (PoS-Cleaner) was developed. POS cleaner powered by a pedaling system, which rotates the cleaning sieves (trommels). This makes it applicable in remote areas without access to fuel or electricity. Seeds to be cleaned are fed into the hopper of POS, which are directed to the inner sieve with mesh sizes larger than seeds to trap large particles such as stones, crushed cobs. The remnants are directed to the two outer interlocking sieves (one sieve fixed and the other adjustable), which emit particles smaller than the seeds such as dust, chaff. The mesh sizes of the outer interlocking sieves can be adjusted, which permits cleaning multiple seeds. POS was tested on maize, beans, and groundnuts, whose cleaning rates were 576.5 kg/h, 375.8 kg/h, and 377.4 kg/h, respectively. Also, the cleaning efficiencies were 95.09% (maize), 87.61% (beans), and 81.67% (groundnuts). Thus, the adaption of POS-cleaner presents a viable cleaning option for smallholder farmers in rural and remote areas with no access to the national grid.