Nigeria Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Research Vol. 5, No. 1, 2019(76-83) 76 76 DEVELOPMENT OF A TERMINAL VELOCITY MEASURING DEVICE FOR GRAINS A. J. Abubakar * , S. A. Iya, H. U. Kabri and M. A. Abdulrafeeu Department of Agricultural and Environmental Enigineering, Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola. *Corresponding author: email: abubakarjilima@mautech.edu.ng; +2347033058149 Abstract A terminal velocity measuring device was developed using locally available materials to assist indigenous designers in determining the terminal velocity of local grains. The device consists of a frame, electric motor, elbow, regulator/control switch, fan/impeller, anemometer and observation column. The device was evaluated using three varieties of grains of Paddy Rice, Sorghum and Beans. The result showed terminal velocity values of 6.95 ± 0.37, 4.71 ± 0.24 and 10.98 ± 0.27ms -1 for Paddy Rice, Sorghum and Beans respectively. Efficiency of the machine was found to be 70.06%. This terminal velocity device can be used efficiently by indigenous designers to determine the terminal velocity of grains for their design work. Key Words: Terminal Velocity, grains, designers, expensive, developed 1 INTRODUCTION ver the years, there has been a spectacular increase in the world demand for food grains. Forcast on future production indicates that this trend will continue. The value of locally produced agricultural grains declines substantially due to their poor quality (presence of dirt, stones, chaff etc.). This poor quality can be attributed to the fact that, majority of grain producers in the country resort to crude and local means of processing. This is because most of the machineries and equipment used in food processing in Nigeria today are imported from foreign countries like China, Netherland, Germany etc. The cost of ownership and maintenance of the equipment are too exorbitant. This makes them unaffordable to majority of intending, young entrepreneurs and domestic users. Therefore, there is need for indigenous designers to rise up to the challenge by producing local alternatives that could be affordable and effective in meeting the demands of teaming farmers and entrepreneurs [1]. In Nigeria until of recent, the demand for locally produced grains especially rice is low due to their low quality. This has been attributed to poor harvesting and post-harvest handling method which encourages the presence of contaminants such as stones, stick, chaff and leave stalk due to low quality of the processed grains [2]. These Foreign materials gets into the product during harvesting, handling and transportation which must be significantly reduced or completely removed for good market value of grains and their products. But the traditional method of winnowing employed by the peasant farmers in most parts of the country cannot effectively handle the increased grain production of the country [2]. The increasing economic importance of food materials, together with the complexity of modern technology for their production, handling, storage, processing, preservation, quality evaluation and utilization demands comprehensive information on physical and aerodynamic O