Experimental Study on Forced Aeration of Fresh Paddy During Barge Transportation in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Fresh paddy transported by barge in the Mekong Delta can accumulate respiration heat during journeys longer than 24 h, accelerating quality deterioration. This study evaluated forced aeration using a 1 m2 × 2.5 m laboratory model (approximately 1.4 t) and a field trial on a 60 t barge with aerated and non-aerated compartments. Fresh paddy (24.1 ± 1.4% wet basis) was aerated at an average superficial air velocity of 0.053 m s−1, equivalent to 129 m3 h−1 t−1. Grain temperature, moisture content, airflow, static pressure, air enthalpy, and milling quality were measured. In field trials, aeration reduced grain temperature to approximately 29.0 °C after 6 h, close to ambient temperature (29.3 °C), whereas non-aerated paddy reached 37.8 °C. The temperature difference of approximately 10–11 °C was maintained during transportation. Mean specific heat removal was 616 kJ h−1 t−1, and cumulative thermal exposure decreased from 243.8 to 13.1 °C·h, corresponding to 94.6% suppression. Moisture content and all measured quality indicators did not differ significantly; chalkiness showed a numerical decrease from 7% to 4% (p = 0.101). Forced aeration can therefore stabilize high-moisture paddy during barge transportation and reduce heat-related quality loss.