Study on in-store drying technology of paddy in China

In China, with accelerating growth of agriculture economy structure and rapid development of farming mechanization, the intensity and scale of grain planting has increased considerably. However, the drying of freshly harvested grain is a big problem needing to be resolved. In-store drying technology has good ability for large scale drying. Low energy consumption and successful application of this technology in Australia and America has attracted much attention by the Chinese government. Therefore, study of instore drying started in China from the cooperative study of ‘In-store drying of paddy in China’ with Australia in 1997. This paper will introduce the main projects of in-store drying in China since 1997, different periods of the technology development, key problems solved, major achievements and the drying technology distribution within China. After about 13 years development, in-store drying of paddy in China includes technology and related equipment specifically for China, such as technology and equipment for mobile ventilation, mold prevention with ozone, heaters for drying grain moisture, and computerized cooling systems. The initial moisture content of paddy allowed for in-store drying increased from 16% to 25%, the bulk allowable depth of paddy increased from 1.8 m to 6 m, and was competitive with paddy drying throughout the world. The main tasks to advance in-store drying in China in the future will be integration of two stage drying technology for paddy and development of relevant equipment, wireless control ventilation technology and development of relevant equipment, study and application of in-store drying technology in new varieties such as wheat and rapeseed.