Design, Fabrication and Testing of A Fonio Dehusking Machine

Abstract – This paper presents the design, fabrication and testing of a Fonio dehusking machine. Though fonio is a staple food in many countries in West Africa due to its high nutrient content, it is not cultivated on a large scale because of difficulty in processing. The machine has the following units – feeding, rolling, dehusking and separating unit. the fonio passes through the rolling unit where it is abraded by two knurled shafts and is dehusked by the rotation of the dehusking drum in the dehusking unit. The fonio grain is separated from the chaff by passing the mixture through a current of air supplied by a fan. The materials used for the fabrication of the machine where selected based on the design considerations and analyses of its components. The components of the machine were selected locally and machined to specifications using machines such as the lathe, grinding machine, etc. The parts of the machine were assembled at the welding and fabrication workshop of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi. When tested, the machine dehusked 5kg of Fonio in 15minutes. It has an efficiency of 69%.