ISSN(Online): 2319-8753 ISSN (Print): 2347-6710 International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology (A High Impact Factor, Monthly, Peer Reviewed Journal) Visit: www.ijirset.com Vol. 9, Issue 2, February 2020 Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2020.0902068 13840 Design of a Portable Cassava Chopping Machine Osei Seth 1 P. G. Student, School of Science, Department of Physics, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou, China 1 ABSTRACT: Cassava is a root and tuber crop grown across the globe mainly for consumption and industrial purposes. It takes about two to three days to deteriorate after harvest, hence the urgent need to speed up its postharvest handlings. Cassava tubers are mostly chopped into different sizes, dried, and stored for more days; this has led to the development of different chipping/chopping machines which produce fixed chopped-sizes of tuber as the desired results. This study is to design a portable cassava chopping machine that is capable of producing different chopped-sizes of tubers. The machine uses shear strength caused by the rotary motions of the blades to chop the tubers. After theoretical evaluation, the machine has 814.4-1227.4 kg/hr capacity, ≥95% efficiency, and no/minimal flesh losses/mechanical damage. This machine is simple to operate and it is recommended for small, medium, and large-scale cassava processors. KEYWORDS: Cassava tubers, chopping machine, chopping blades, and sieve. I.INTRODUCTION Cassava originates from South America, Western Brazil, and it’s a perennial and consumable root and tuber crop. In the Amazon Region, it’s one of the consumed food, and it’s grown across the globe especially in the tropical and sub - tropical regions [1]. It is typically grown on small-scale by traditional means, for this reason, less attention has been given to its processing and production input. Cassava has moved from a poor man’s food to an export commodity due to the current demand for cassava chips and pellets from countries like China[2], [3]. It is the most perishable crop amongst the root and tuber crops, which deteriorates two to three days after harvest [4]. For consumptive purposes, some of the basic cassava processing operations are peeling, sieving, drying, frying and extrusion, grating, and milling [5]. Many machines have been developed including the ones designed by [6]–[8]. These machines have a single cutting blade and a sieve. Henceforth, the machines have fixed/constant chipped-sizes of tuber as the desired output, hence if different desired-sizes are needed, two or more machines will be required to achieve that goal. Also, these chipped tubers are very tiny in sizes, which makes their handlings difficult. Cassava tubers are mostly chopped, dried, and stored for some time, because reducing the sizes via chopping operations reduces the surface area which facilitates the drying process. Hence, the objective of this study is to design a portable cassava chopping machine that is capable of producing different chopped-sizes of tuber for small, medium, and large-scale cassava processors.