Diseño y construcción de una máquina cortadora y despulpadora de cacao con una capacidad de 2400 mazorcas por hora para mejorar la productividad del agricultor.

Abstract

The objective of this proposal is the design and construction of a cocoa cutter and pulper with a minimum capacity of 2400 cobs/hour, aimed at improving the productivity of the farmer in small and medium-sized cocoa crops. For the project’s development, the existing referential framework on this agricultural equipment was revised, as well as the characteristics and geometry of the ears and cocoa seeds. An analysis of alternatives was carried out, taking into account the voice of the user and the engineer, opting for one solution of blades and rotating blades for the cutting system and a rotating cylinder for the pulping process. Experimental tests were carried out to determine the cutting force required in the fragmentation of the cocoa cobs. All the mechanical elements that make up the team were designed and calculated theoretically. It was done a mechanical elements’ modeling in SolidWorks, verifying their resistance by using the finite element method in ANSYS, and an analysis of the structure of the support in SAP2000. The equipment is made of stainless steel and carbon. The performance tests proved that the equipment complies with the required parameters for an adequate process of cocoa’s cutting and pulping, exceeding the capacity proposed at the beginning to 3648 cobs/hour, in addition to a low percentage of damage in the total of the processed grains. It is recommended to check the possible accumulation of grains in the collection tray due to its high viscosity, to maintain the freedom of the foreign agents and not to exceed the capacity of the feeding hopper.