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CONTENTS
 Separations Chemical
Dryers

Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Drying is an operation in which moisture is removed thermally from a Usage Examples
liquid/solid mixture. Dryers vary in application and function. Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotating Drum Rotary
General Information
Rotating drum dryers, also known simply as drum dryers, dry material Equipment Design
on the surface of a heated, rotating roll. Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
(Copyright R. Simon (Dryers) Ltd.,
General Information
Equipment Design
Nottingham, UK)
Usage Examples
Advantages
General Information Disadvantages
The liquid feed of a drum dryer is applied onto one or more slowly Spray
rotating steam-heated rolls. The dried product is removed by a knife- General Information
Equipment Design
like mechanism.
Usage Examples
Drum dryers are primarily used to dry slurries and pastes. They are Advantages
Disadvantages
available in several types; single drum, double drum, double drum
Conveyor
vacuum, and twin drum. Selection is based on production rate, heat
General Information
transfer, and system design. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Equipment Design Advantages
Disadvantages
In single drum dryers, the feed is applied to the heated drum by
Tray
applicator rolls. The number of applicator rolls used controls the
General Information
application of the material, which determines the characteristics of Equipment Design
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the dried product. The dried product is removed by side blades and
dropped onto a conveyor, which takes the product to the next step in
the production line.

Dryers - Single Drum CONTENTS

Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
In double drum dryers, the material enters in the center and is spread Advantages
onto the two heated metal rolls. The material is dried and removed by Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
the side blades as the rolls rotate. The product is dropped onto
General Information
conveyor belts and is taken to the next unit in the process.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Conditions a ecting a given unit's drying capacity are feed rate, nip
Advantages
gap, roll diameter, and steam pressure.
Disadvantages
Spray
Double drum dryers can also operate in a vacuum. Vacuum systems
General Information
are particularly favorable when a sterile environment is required for
Equipment Design
drying or when a porous structure is desired. Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Dryers - Double Drum Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Twin drum dryers are equipped with a splash feed at the bottom. As Equipment Design
the animation below demonstrates, the feed is splashed onto the Usage Examples
heated rolls, which rotate away from each other. The dried material is Advantages
removed by side blades and dropped onto conveyors. Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Dryers - Twin Drum Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information

Usage Examples Equipment Design

Usage Examples
The versatility of design allows for the use of rotating drum dryers in a Advantages
wide variety of industries, ranging from food to chemical. Special Disadvantages

designs allow for the use of rotating drums with toxic, inert, and Conveyor
General Information
ammable gases by connecting the vapor outlet to a condenser. The
Equipment Design
rotating drum dryer shown below is used in the fruit and vegetable
Usage Examples
industry. Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
(Copyright R. Simon (Dryers) Ltd.,
General Information
Nottingham, UK) Equipment Design
Usage Examples

Advantages Disadvantages Advantages

Disadvantages
Large drying capacity Big and bulky, requires a Rotary
Relatively low cost large amount of space General Information
Large variety of feed and Equipment Design
Usage Examples
product moistures possible
Advantages
Easy to operate
Disadvantages
Flash
Rotary General Information
Equipment Design
Rotary dryers dry material by heated air while being transported along
Usage Examples
the interior of a rotating cylinder.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide Corporation, Cary, NC)
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information General Information
Rotary dryers consist of a rotating cylindrical shell that can be Equipment Design
horizontal or slightly inclined. In a rotary dryer the heat transfer Usage Examples
Advantages
mechanism can be either direct or indirect. Direct-heat rotary dryers
Disadvantages
are more common than indirect-heat rotary dryers. Shown here is a
Tray
rotary dryer getting installed.
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide Corporation, Cary, NC)
Advantages
Disadvantages
Equipment Design Rotary
Direct-heat rotary dryers dry the wet feed through direct contact with General Information
a hot gas. The gas ow can be cocurrent or countercurrent to the feed Equipment Design
Usage Examples
stream.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) General Information
Equipment Design
The feed dries as it is transported along the interior of the rotating
Usage Examples
cylinder. The shell acts as both a stirrer and a conveying device. Advantages
Generally, direct-heat rotary dryers are equipped with ights , like the Disadvantages
ones pictured below, on the interior for lifting and showering the feed Spray
through the gas stream as it passes through the cylinder. In horizontal General Information
rotating cylinders, the ights move the particles down the cylinder. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Choice of ight design depends on the characteristics and owrate of
Advantages
the material being dried.
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL)
Rotary
General Information
One of the most common types of indirect-heat rotary dryers is the
Equipment Design
steam-tube rotary dryer, shown below. It consists of a slowly rotating,
Usage Examples
almost horizontal shell with heat-transfer tubes along the outside Advantages
walls. Steam enters the heat-transfer tubes through an inlet at the Disadvantages
discharge end of the dryer. The feed enters at one end through a Flash
feeder and exits at the other. It is moved toward the discharge by the General Information
inclined rotation of the shell. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) Disadvantages
Conveyor
Usage Examples General Information
Equipment Design
Rotary dryers are used primarily in the production of fertilizers, Usage Examples
pharmaceuticals , and cement. Below is a picture of an installed rotary Advantages
drum that could be used for food ingredients or tobacco. Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide Corporation, Cary, NC)
Advantages
Disadvantages
Advantages Disadvantages Rotary
E ects of operating Kiln/ rolling action di cult General Information
Equipment Design
parameter changes to quantify
Usage Examples
predictable Sensitive to load and gas
Advantages
velocity variations Disadvantages
Flash
Flash General Information
Equipment Design
Flash drying is used to dry materials that can be transported by an air
Usage Examples
stream in large volume. The picture below shows two ash dryers Advantages
used for evaporation at 15 tons per hour. Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) General Information
Equipment Design
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General Information
Flash dryers process a continuous feed of wet particulate material
that is dried and transported by a stream of warm or hot air. Flash
dryers are similar in design to spray or uidized bed dryers.
CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc.,
General Information
Columbia, MD) Equipment Design
Usage Examples

Equipment Design Advantages

Disadvantages
The diagram below exempli es a general ash dryer system. Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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Flash dryers are grouped into two types; conventional and alternate.
The main di erence between the two types is that the alternate dryer
includes a manifold centrifugal classi er. An example of a
conventional dryer is a pneumatic-conveyor dryer, in which the hot
gas lifts the material vertically while drying it. These dryers can be
CONTENTS
single or multi-stage. The schematic below shows a single stage
Dryers
pneumatic-conveyor dryer.
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Usage Examples
Advantages
The wet feed and hot air enter the dryer at the bottom of the Disadvantages
conveying duct. Drying takes place in the conveyor, which has a Spray
residence time between 0.5 and 3.5 seconds. The material is then General Information
transferred to a dry product collection system consisting of a cyclone Equipment Design
separator and lters. Dry product is removed and the used gas is Usage Examples
Advantages
vented. Some systems also incorporate a recycle stream.
Disadvantages

Usage Examples Conveyor

General Information
Flash dryers like the one shown below are used for a number of Equipment Design
applications, such as in the production of distillers' spent grain, Usage Examples
Advantages
sludge, corn gluten, pigments, fertilizers, and inorganic and organic
Disadvantages
chemicals.
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Disadvantages
Rotary
Columbia, MD) General Information
Equipment Design
Flash dryers are also used to produce ne, homogeneous, non- Usage Examples
agglomerated powders, such as the kaolin clay shown below. Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
(Coopyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Columbia, MD)
Advantages
Disadvantages
Advantages Disadvantages Spray
Rapid heat and mass Suspension and General Information
Equipment Design
exchange, avoiding entrainment control
Usage Examples
overheating of sensitive problems.
Advantages
products. Particle size limited to ne Disadvantages
High heat transfer rates powders. Conveyor
due to good contact Susceptible to overloading. General Information
between particles and gas. Possible abrasion or dust Equipment Design
Circulation approaches formation due to high gas Usage Examples
Advantages
ideal mixing, resulting in velocity.
Disadvantages
uniform product moisture
Tray
concentration.
General Information
Equipment Design
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Simple equipment with few

moving parts.

Fluidized Bed
In uidized bed dryers, wet particulate feed is uidized by the drying CONTENTS
gas. A hot or warm gas passes upward through the wet particulate Dryers
feed so that the material can dry while remaining uidized. Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) Usage Examples
Advantages

General Information Disadvantages

Fluidized Bed
Depending on their design, uid-bed dryers can be run in continuous General Information
or batch modes. They can also be used to heat and cool or even to Equipment Design
coat particles in the same unit. Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Dryer - Fluidized Bed Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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Equipment Design
Fluid-bed dryers can be categorized as stationary or vibrating. CONTENTS
Stationary uid bed dryers can run in batch, plug ow, mixed mode, or Dryers
in stages. Rotating Drum
General Information
In stationary uid-bed dryers wet material is fed at the top and dried Equipment Design
by an upstream of hot gas, usually air. Dry product is removed at the Usage Examples
Advantages
bottom, and the air is cleaned through a cyclone and discharged at
Disadvantages
the top of the unit.
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD)
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL)
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Many factors could prevent particles from becoming uidized, such as
Advantages
nonuniformity or stickiness. Ideally, the material being dried should Disadvantages
not be too dense or cause uneven air distribution. Flash
General Information
Vibrating uid-bed dryers, such as the one shown below, are used to Equipment Design
avoid problems caused by nonuniform or sticky particles. Materials Usage Examples
are uidized by oscillation of the bed units, rather than by the ow of Advantages
air. Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
(Copyright GEA Barr-Rosin Inc., St. Charles, IL) Equipment Design
Usage Examples

Usage Examples Advantages

Disadvantages
Fluidized bed dryers are used in manufacturing many products. Conveyor
Typical applications include the production of pharmaceutical General Information
intermediates, pigments, food products, and chemicals. The vibrating Equipment Design
uid-bed dryer below is used to dry several types of powders, Usage Examples
Advantages
agglomerates, and granulates.
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Batch mode uidized bed dryers such as the one shown below are Advantages
widely used in the pharmaceutical industry due to the small Disadvantages

production volume requirements and vital quality assurance. They Flash

General Information
have replaced tray dryers in many industrial processes.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) General Information
Equipment Design

Advantages Disadvantages Usage Examples

Advantages
No mechanical moving Sensitive to load variations. Disadvantages
parts, resulting in low Feed particle size must be Conveyor
maintenance. equal to or less than 100 General Information
Rapid heat and mass microns. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
exchange, avoiding
Advantages
overheating of sensitive
Disadvantages
products. Tray
High heat transfer rates. General Information
Equipment Design
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Even ow permits
continuous, automatically
controlled, large scale
operation.

Spray CONTENTS
Dryers
Spray dryers consist of a large vertical cylindrical chamber. Material to Rotating Drum
be dried is sprayed as droplets into a stream of hot gas. General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Usage Examples
Advantages
General Information Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
Spray dryers transform a solution, suspension, or paste into a dried
General Information
product by spraying the uid into a warm or hot drying medium that
Equipment Design
is usually air. They can operate countercurrently, cocurrently, or as a Usage Examples
mixed ow process. Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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Equipment Design
In a typical spray dryer, the cylindrical chamber has a short conical
bottom. Liquid feed is pumped into a spray disk atomizer set in the
roof chamber. The liquid is atomized into small drops , which are
thrown radially into a stream of hot gas entering near the top of the CONTENTS
chamber. Manipulating the temperature of this hot gas stream allows Dryers
control over the porosity of the dried particles. Once drying is Rotating Drum
complete, the gas and solids are cooled and separated in a cyclone General Information
separator, where any entrained particles of solid are removed. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Disadvantages
Tray
Cocurrent, countercurrent, and mixed ow patterns are shown below. General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD)
Disadvantages
The atomizer is the most important part of any spray dryer. It Rotary
General Information
determines the size, size distribution, trajectory, and speed of the
Equipment Design
droplets. The pictures below show two commonly used atomizers. On
Usage Examples
the left is a rotary atomizer and on the right is a pressure nozzle Advantages
atomizer. Rotary atomizers typically spin at a rate of 5,000 to 25,000 Disadvantages
rpm. See the Nozzles section of the encyclopedia for more Flash
information. General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) General Information
Equipment Design
The drop size determines the drying rate by regulating the available Usage Examples
heat transfer surface and it also controls the size of the dried particle. Advantages
Additionally, a larger drop size requires a larger drying chamber. Disadvantages
Conveyor
Drying chambers are often found to be 20 m or taller.
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
(Copyright Lake Innovation LLC, Lake Jackson, TX) Usage Examples
Advantages
Once the material has passed through, it can be collected easily from Disadvantages
the chamber's bottom if it is a coarse powder but ne powders have Flash
to be collected from bag lters. General Information
Equipment Design
Since spray drying propels large amounts of ne dust into the air, Usage Examples
there is a risk of re or dust explosion. However, with proper safety Advantages
measures these explosions are very rare. Spray dryers are equipped Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
with pressure venting systems, and are often operated in an inert
General Information
atmosphere to help prevent ignition.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Usage Examples Advantages
Spray dryers span a broad range of applications. They can be found in Disadvantages
Spray
food, dairy, and plasma processes, as well as in the production of
General Information
pharmaceuticals , organic and inorganic chemicals, rubber latex,
Equipment Design
ceramic powders, and detergents. The spray dryer pictured below on Usage Examples
the left is used for dairy applications, and the one pictured on the Advantages
right is used in the production of co ee. Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
(Copyright GEA Process Engineering Inc., Columbia, MD) Advantages
Disadvantages

Advantages Disadvantages Rotary

General Information
Product properties and Poor heat transfer at low Equipment Design
quality are e ectively temperature di erences or Usage Examples
controlled with viscous liquids Advantages
High heat-transfer Requires a large amount of Disadvantages
Flash
coe cients at high oor space and is heavy
General Information
temperature di erences High holdup
Equipment Design
Easy to descale Highly energy intensive, but Usage Examples
Relatively inexpensive use of multiple drying Advantages
stages can allow for Disadvantages
recycling of heat Fluidized Bed
Nozzles and atomizers are General Information
easily plugged Equipment Design
Usage Examples

Conveyor
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor dryers are used for products that require gentle handling Spray
General Information
and large-scale production.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC)

General Information
A conveyor dryer continuously transports material horizontally on a
perforated screen through which warm air is blown.
CONTENTS
There are three types of conveyor dryers; single conveyor dryers, Dryers
Rotating Drum
multi-stage conveyor dryers, and multiple conveyor dryers. Pictured
General Information
below is a single pass conveyor dryer.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC) Equipment Design
Usage Examples

Equipment Design Advantages

Disadvantages
Wet particulate material moves through a conveyor dryer on a Fluidized Bed
perforated conveyor that allows warm air to pass through. This warm General Information
air dries the material as it moves through the dryer. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
The single conveyor dryer is the most widely used conveyor dryer. The Advantages
dryer consists of several cells. As the conveyor moves through each Disadvantages
cell the material is exposed to di erent process conditions. When the Spray
General Information
material reaches a certain point in the drying process, the air ow
Equipment Design
switches from up- ow to down- ow so that the semi-dry material is
Usage Examples
not blown o the conveyor. The last cell or set of cells is often used to Advantages
cool the product. Disadvantages
Conveyor
Staging is the use of separate conveyors arranged in series so that General Information
one conveyor transfers its products to the next . This design is used Equipment Design
when a large amount of shrinkage occurs during the drying process. Usage Examples
As many as four conveyors can be arranged in series. Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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Multiple conveyor dryers are used when the product requires long,
gentle drying. The material is dried as it passes from one vertically
arranged conveyor to the next . The red arrows indicate the owpath
of air through the dryer. In this design the dryer is not separated into
cells, so the process conditions remain constant throughout the
CONTENTS
process.
Dryers

Usage Examples Rotating Drum

General Information
Conveyor dryers are mainly used in food production. Single conveyor Equipment Design
dryers are used to dry snack foods, nuts, seeds, bread products, pet Usage Examples
food, coconut, gelatin, starches, meat, and other protein products. Advantages
Disadvantages
Multi-stage conveyor dryers are used for products that may shrink
Rotary
while drying, such as spices, fruits, and vegetables. Below is a single
General Information
conveyor dryer used for drying tobacco.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC)
Usage Examples
Multiple conveyor dryers are especially suited for the drying of cereals Advantages
Disadvantages
and pasta, as well as some of the other products mentioned above.
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC) Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages Disadvantages Advantages
Disadvantages
Can handle a variety of Bed of wet material must
Tray
solids continuously and be permeable General Information
Equipment Design
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with very gentle action Important to distribute

Close control of process feed carefully since there is
conditions no opportunity to
Various designs available rearrange it
allow exibility in process
CONTENTS
design
Dryers
Simple machine
Rotating Drum
Easy to clean and maintain
General Information
Equipment Design
Tray Usage Examples
Advantages
Tray dryers are a common form of batch dryers that can use indirect
Disadvantages
or direct heat transfer.
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC)
General Information
Equipment Design
General Information Usage Examples
A typical batch tray dryer consists of an enclosed, insulated housing in Advantages
which trays containing solids are placed on shelves. Direct heat Disadvantages
Spray
transfer is achieved by circulating a large volume of hot gas between
General Information
the trays. Indirect heat transfer requires the use of heated shelves.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Tray dryers can be operated under vacuum with indirect heat transfer.
Advantages
In this type of operation, the trays rest on hollow metal plates lled
Disadvantages
with steam or hot water. The vapors from the solid are removed by an Conveyor
ejector or a vacuum pump. General Information
Equipment Design
Equipment Design Usage Examples
Advantages
Optimum operation of a tray dryer depends on maintaining constant
Disadvantages
temperature and uniform air velocity over the drying material. The
Tray
trays are usually square or rectangular and are stacked in such a way General Information
Equipment Design
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as to allow su cient air ow between them.

Fresh air enters through the inlet and is circulated by a fan which
passes the air over heaters. The heated air is distributed uniformly
over the stack of trays by ba es, drying the material on the trays.
Moist air is continuously vented through the exhaust. CONTENTS
Dryers
Usage Examples Rotating Drum
General Information
Tray dryers are used for materials with long drying cycles, between 12
Equipment Design
and 24 hours. They are also used when the production of several Usage Examples
di erent products requires strict batch identity and thorough cleaning Advantages
of equipment between batches, as in small color-pigment drying Disadvantages
plants. Rotary
General Information
The tray dryer shown below can be used in processes involving bakery Equipment Design
products, fruit, vegetables, bird seed, pet treats, chemicals, Usage Examples
pharmaceuticals , and pigment. Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
(Copyright Buhler Aeroglide, Cary, NC) Disadvantages
Spray
Advantages Disadvantages General Information
Equipment Design
Can process a variety of Requires extensive manual Usage Examples
materials labor Advantages
Low output rate Disadvantages
Non-uniform air ow Conveyor
causing overheating General Information
Equipment Design
Low capacity
Usage Examples

Thin-Film
Advantages
Disadvantages

Thin- lm dryers are continuous agitated dryers that use minimal heat. Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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General Information
Unlike traditional agitated dryers, which operate at high temperatures,
thin- lm dryers operate at low pressures (0.01 bar or less) and low
temperatures. By using less heat the dryer has a lower retention time
and the walls of the dryer do not foul, which is a common problem in CONTENTS
some dryers. They also operate using minimal utilities, have a Dryers
compact design, and have high speci c evaporation capacity. Rotating Drum
General Information

Equipment Design Equipment Design

Usage Examples
There are two types of thin- lm dryers: horizontal and vertical. Advantages
Choosing which one to use depends on the consistency of the Disadvantages
feedstock, the volatile component contained in the feed stream, Rotary
product behavior, and desired form of the nal product. General Information
Equipment Design
A thin- lm dryer consists of a cylinder with a heating jacket that Usage Examples
contains a close clearance rotor. The heating jacket is set at a certain Advantages
Disadvantages
temperature, predetermined by the feedstock, and is heated using
Flash
electrical, steam, water, or thermal oil. The blades of the rotor spread
General Information
the material evenly over the heated wall forming a thin lm on the
Equipment Design
wall, as shown below. Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
(Copyright Chemical Engineering, Access Intelligence, LLC)
Equipment Design
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A bow wave builds up on the side of rotation of the blade, shown

above, and then as the material goes through the clearance it enters
the calming zone on the opposite side of the blade. As this continues
the volatile component of the material evaporates, leaving a dried
material.
CONTENTS
In vertical thin- lm dryers the material begins the boil in the Dryers
preheating zone. At this point evaporation and the formation of solid Rotating Drum
particles begin in the slurry zone. After some time the drying process General Information
Equipment Design
comes to an end in the powder zone, which mostly contains the solid
Usage Examples
particles. The amount of time that the material spends in each of
Advantages
these zones depends on the feed rate, the volatility of the volatile Disadvantages
component, and the operating conditions. The vapors that are Rotary
produced during evaporation ow into and condense in an external General Information
condenser. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
(Copyright Chemical Engineering, Access Intelligence, LLC)
General Information
Equipment Design
Horizontal thin- lm dryers operate using blades shaped like shovels,
Usage Examples
known as mixing blades, to move the material and break up the
Advantages
lumps. At the same time xed clearance blades distribute the material Disadvantages
evenly over the heating wall. Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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CONTENTS
Dryers
Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
(Copyright Chemical Engineering, Access Intelligence, LLC) Fluidized Bed
General Information

Usage Examples Equipment Design

Usage Examples
Thin- lm drying is used when the material to be dried is temperature Advantages
sensitive. Some of these materials include specialty chemicals, Disadvantages
polymers, food products, and pharmaceuticals . This is a commonly Spray
used dryer in the pharmaceutical industry since these products General Information
Equipment Design
require very speci c processing conditions, such as low temperature
Usage Examples
drying.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Advantages Disadvantages Conveyor
Low energy consumption Not suitable for coarse General Information
Equipment Design
Compact feedstock
Usage Examples
Flexibility in operation Won't produce granular
Advantages
Only needs a single pass to nal products Disadvantages
dry material Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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Can handle many feedstock

consistencies
Low operation temperature
High heat-transfer rate
Stirred tanks
CONTENTS
Continuous
Dryers
High turbulence in product
Rotating Drum
layer
General Information
Completely closed design Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Acknowledgements Advantages
Disadvantages
Chemical Engineering , Access Intelligence, LLC
Rotary
General Information
DeZurik, Inc. , Sartell, MN
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Energy Unlimited Inc. , Dodgeville, WI
Advantages
GEA Barr-Rosin Inc. , St. Charles, IL Disadvantages
Flash
GEA Process Engineering Inc. , Columbia, MD General Information
Equipment Design
Lake Innovation LLC , Lake Jackson, TX Usage Examples
Advantages
R. Simon (Dryers) Ltd. , Nottingham, UK Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
References General Information
Equipment Design
Chandran, A.N., S. Subba Rao, and Y.B.G. Varma. "Fluidized Bed Drying Usage Examples
of Solids." AIChE Journal 36 (Jan. 1990): 29-38. Print. Advantages
Disadvantages
Cook, Edward M., and Harman D. DuMont. Process Drying Practice . Spray
New York: McGraw Hill,      Inc., 1991. 33-35, 42-54. Print. General Information
Equipment Design
Hovmand, Svend, Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. 1, 2nd ed. New Usage Examples
York: Marcel Dekker,      Inc., 1995. 195-247. Print. Advantages
Disadvantages
Jenkins, Scott. "Facts At Your Fingertips: Spray Drying Parameters." Conveyor
Chemical Engineering. June 2012: 33 Print. General Information
Equipment Design
Kelly, John, Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. 1, 2nd ed. New York: Usage Examples
Marcel Dekker, Inc.,      1995. 161-181. Print. Advantages
Disadvantages
Khattab, N.M. "Optimization of the Drying Process in Batch Dryers." Tray
Energy Sources 18      (Apr.-May 1996): 269-281. Print. General Information
Equipment Design
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Kisakurek, Bilgin, Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. 1, 2nd ed. New

York: Marcel Dekker,      Inc., 1995. 503-523. Print.

Masters, K. Spray Drying Handbook . New York: John Wiley & Sons,
1985. Print.
CONTENTS
McCabe, Warren L., Julian C. Smith, and Peter Harriott. Unit Dryers
Operations of Chemical Engineering . 5th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, Rotating Drum
1993. 792-793, 798-801, 803-805. Print. General Information
Equipment Design
Moller, Jens Thousig. A Primer on Spray Drying . Chemical Engineering. Usage Examples
11(2009): 34 - 40. Moore, James G., Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. Advantages
1, 2nd ed. New York: Marcel Dekker,      Inc., 1995. 249-262. Print. Disadvantages
Rotary
Mujumdar, Arun, Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. 1, 2nd ed. New General Information
York: Marcel Dekker,      Inc., 1995. 263-307. Print. Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Ne , Jack. "Hot Flash on Dryers." Food Processing 59 (Apr. 1998): 74- Advantages
76. Disadvantages
Flash
Perry, Robert H., and Don W. Green. Perry's Chemical Engineers' General Information
Handbook, 7th ed. New      York: McGraw Hill, 1997. 8-37, 12-39 - 12- Equipment Design
41, 12-43 - 12-44, 12-51 - 12-56, 12-77 - 12-90.      Print. Usage Examples
Advantages
Raouzeos, Georgios. "Thin-Film Drying O ers Deep Bene ts." Disadvantages

Chemical Engineering .      September 2012: 40-45 Fluidized Bed

General Information
Sturgeon, Lloyd F., Handbook of Industrial Drying . vol. 1, 2nd ed. New Equipment Design
Usage Examples
York: Marcel Dekker,      Inc., 1995. 525-537. Print.
Advantages
Trystram, G., and J. Vasseur. "Modeling and Simulation of a Drum- Disadvantages

drying Process." International Chemical Engineering 32 (Oct. 1992): Spray

General Information
689-705. Print.
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Van't Land, C.M., Industrial Drying Equipment: Selection and
Advantages
Application . New York: Marcel      Dekker, Inc., 1991. 40-143, 149-179,
Disadvantages
212-216. Print. Conveyor
General Information
Developers Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Michaiah Crump
Advantages
Disadvantages
Melissa Schlosser
Tray
General Information
Steve Wesorick
Equipment Design
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Matthew Robertson

Kelsey Kaplan

Andrea Roberts
CONTENTS
Steve Cotton
Dryers
Thomas Plegue Rotating Drum
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Rotary
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Flash
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Fluidized Bed
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Spray
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Conveyor
General Information
Equipment Design
Usage Examples
Advantages
Disadvantages
Tray
General Information
Equipment Design
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