Propane-Powered Crop Dryers

choi

Tony C Dreibus and Brett Philbin, Rains Leave Corn Farmers Wet Behind the Ears. Wall Street Journal, Nov 2, 2013.
http://online.wsj.com/news/artic ... 4579171743601998298

the last two paragraphs:

"A rare confluence of events has fueled the rush for propane. Farmers from Nebraska to Ohio who would normally stagger harvest times all started collection at once because cold, wet weather in the spring delayed planting. Weather during the summer was favorable, so the USDA is projecting the U.S. corn crop will total 13.8 billion bushels, easily topping the previous record of 13.1 billion in 2009. Excessive rainfall in the past 30 days in the upper Midwest has left grain soggy.

"Corn must be dried until water accounts for no more that 15% of the kernel weight before it can be stored without risk of rotting or developing disease, said Adam Czech, a spokesman for the Minnesota Corn Growers Association in Shakopee.

My comment:
(a) Now that I read the report, I realize I have notr seen farmers in US spread out crops (rice for example) to dry (on the roadside or courtyard, etc). The report said propane dryers were used. In print but not online was a photo of a propane dryer, whose frontal vuew is similar to that of a (train) locomotive in size and shape.
(b) There is no need to read the rest.
(c) Grain Drying. Propane Education & Research Council (PERC), undated
http://www.choosepropane.org/cefarmcropsgrain.cfm
("Propane-fueled grain dryers are capable of drying virtually any type of grain. They are available as either batch dryers (where grain is dried in batches ranging from 80 to 1,000 bushel) or continuous flow dryers (wet grain is fed into the dryer in a steady stream)")

(d) Facts About Propane, National Propane Gas Association undated.
http://www.npga.org/files/public/Facts_About_Propane.pdf

"At atmospheric pressure and temperatures above –44 F, it is a non-toxic, colorless and odorless gas. Just as with natural gas, an identifying odor is added so it can be readily detected. When contained in an approved cylinder or tank, propane exists as a liquid and vapor.

"Approximately 90 percent of the United States’ propane supply is produced domestically, while 70 percent of the remaining supply is imported from Canada and Mexico. Approximately equal amounts of propane come from the refining of crude oil and from natural gas processing.

"Crop drying—corn, soybeans, grains, tobacco, apples, peanuts, onions and other crops.