Proceedings of the Conference on Technologies for Future Cities (CTFC 2025)

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Hybrid Solar Dryers for Sustainable Agricultural Development: Technology, Performance, and Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Authors
Hemant V. Chavan1, Kaushal Prasad2, *
1Finolex Academy of Management and Technology, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India
2Finolex Academy of Management and Technology, Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, India
*Corresponding author. Email: kaushal.prasad@famt.ac.in
Corresponding Author
Kaushal Prasad
Available Online 20 April 2026.
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6239-650-0_18How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Solar Energy; Hybrid solar dryer; sustainable development goals
Abstract

Hybrid solar dryers (HSDs) combine solar energy with additional heat sources like biomass, biogas, or electricity, creating a system that can dry agricultural products more efficiently and without interruptions. This hybrid approach helps overcome major issues seen in traditional post-harvest drying, such as the inconsistency of sunlight, the risk of contamination, and the high energy demand of conventional methods. Because HSDs can maintain steady temperatures and controlled drying conditions, they improve the quality of the dried produce, shorten the overall drying time, and significantly reduce post-harvest losses, which can reach up to 40% in many developing countries. This review paper discusses the main design concepts of HSDs, how they function, their performance based on recent studies, and how strongly they support several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—especially SDGs 2, 7, 12, and 13.. Using insights from experiments, computational modelling, and socioeconomic studies, the paper shows how HSDs can strengthen food security, support rural development, and contribute to climate resilience. Research findings reveal that HSDs can lower energy use and drying duration by 20–50% compared to open-sun drying, while optimized systems can reach thermal efficiencies above 60%. The paper also highlights future opportunities, such as expanding HSD implementation through supportive policies and developing advanced materials to further improve sustainable agricultural processing.

Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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Volume Title
Proceedings of the Conference on Technologies for Future Cities (CTFC 2025)
Series
Atlantis Highlights in Sustainable Development
Publication Date
20 April 2026
ISBN
978-94-6239-650-0
ISSN
3005-155X
DOI
10.2991/978-94-6239-650-0_18How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2026 The Author(s)
Open Access
Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - CONF
AU  - Hemant V. Chavan
AU  - Kaushal Prasad
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/20
TI  - Hybrid Solar Dryers for Sustainable Agricultural Development: Technology, Performance, and Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals
BT  - Proceedings of the Conference on Technologies for Future Cities (CTFC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 273
EP  - 289
SN  - 3005-155X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-650-0_18
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-650-0_18
ID  - Chavan2026
ER  -