Experimental Investigation on High Value Products From Jackfruit Using Solar Compound Parabolic Concentrator

ABSTRACT Value addition of nutrient‐rich jackfruit was done using a mixed mode solar dryer. To improve the solar collector efficiency and preserve the quality parameters of jackfruit, a solar Compound Parabolic Collector (CPC) embedded with an Evacuated Tube (ETC) air heating system was developed. Fresh jackfruit leather was pre‐treated with preservatives and dried in the developed CPC solar dryer. The system recorded a maximum temperature of 58.4°C during a typical sunny day in December 2019. The drying time for jackfruit was observed to be 16 h, while the average collector efficiency was 56.4%. Quality analyses revealed that beta carotene content (500.78 μg/100 g) was higher in the solar‐dried sample due to reduced light exposure compared to open‐sun drying. The ash content was higher in open‐sun dried samples (3.14%) compared to solar‐dried sample (3.07%), indicating dust deposition during open‐sun drying. Economic analysis demonstrated the system's financial viability with a payback period of 6 months and a benefit–cost ratio of 1.49.