CHAPTER 9

PSYCHROMETRY
The capacity of air for moisture removal depends on its humidity and its
temperature. The study of a relationship between air and its associated water is
called psychrometry.

Moist Air Properties

The drying medium used in drying cereal grains is moist air, which is a mixture of
dry air and water vapor. Dry air consists of a number of gases, mainly Oxygen
and Nitrogen plus some minor components such as Argon, Carbon dioxide, Neon,
etc. Goff (1949), in determining the thermodynamic properties of moist air,
arbitrarily defined dry air as a gaseous mixture with a molecular weight of 28.966
and a mole-fraction composition of 0.2095 Oxygen, 0.7809 Nitrogen, 0.0093
Argon and 0.0003 Carbon dioxide. Dry air may vary slightly from these
proportions at a given location; however, the Goff figures are sufficiently accurate
for engineering calculations.

In addition to the dry-air gases, moist air contains a varying amount of water
vapor. Although the weight fraction of water vapor in the air used for cereal grain
drying is always less than one-tenth, the presence of water vapor molecules has a
profound effect on the drying process. A number of terms are used to express the
amount of water vapor in moist air. These and other thermodynamic terms
employed in describing moist air properties are defined in the following section.
DEFINITION OF PSYCHROMETRIC TERMS
Three humidity terms are used in the grain-drying literature to characterize the
amount of water vapor held in the drying air:
 Vapor pressure,
 Relative humidity, and
 Humidity ratio.
The temperatures of moist air may refer to the:
 dry-bulb,
 dew-point or
 Wet-bulb temperature.
Two additional moist-air properties frequently used in grain-drying calculations
are:
 Enthalpy and
 Specific volume.
These nine moist-air thermodynamic properties are defined in the following
paragraphs.
Vapor Pressure
The vapor pressure (Pv) is the partial pressure exerted by the water vapor
molecules in moist air. When air is fully saturated with water vapor, its vapor
pressure is called the saturated vapor pressure (Pvs).
Relative Humidity
The relative humidity () is the ratio of the mole fraction (or vapor pressure) of
water vapor in the air to the mole fraction (or vapor pressure) of the water vapor
in saturated air at the same temperature and atmospheric pressure. The relative
humidity is expressed as a decimal or a percentage. Relative humidity values
between 0.0 and 100.0% are encountered in grain drying.
Humidity Ratio
The humidity ratio () is the weight of the water vapor contained in the moist air
per unit weight of dry air. Other terms used for humidity ratio are absolute
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humidity and specific humidity.
Dry-bulb Temperature
The dry-bulb temperature (T) is the temperature of moist air indicated by an
ordinary thermometer. Whenever the term temperature is used in this book
without a prefix, dry-bulb temperature is implied.

Dew-point Temperature
The dew-point temperature (Tdp) is the temperature at which condensation
occurs when the air is cooled at constant humidity ratio and constant atmospheric
pressure. Thus, the dew point temperature can be considered as the saturation
temperature corresponding to the humidity ratio and vapor pressure of the moist
air.
Wet-bulb Temperature
A distinction should be made between the psychrometric and thermodynamic
wet-bulb temperatures. The psychrometric wet-bulb temperature (Twb) is the
temperature of moist air indicated by a thermometer whose bulb is covered with
a wet wick. The airflow passing over the wick should have a velocity of at least 5
m per sec.
The thermodynamic wet-bulb temperature (Twb*) is the temperature reached by
moist air and water if the air is adiabatically saturated by the evaporating water.
The psychrometric and thermodynamic wet-bulb temperatures of moist air are
nearly equal.
Enthalpy
The enthalpy (h) of a dry air-water vapor mixture is the heat content of the moist
air per unit weight of dry air above a certain reference temperature. Since only
differences in enthalpy are of practical engineering interest, the choice of the
reference temperature is inconsequential.
Specific Volume
The specific volume (v) of moist air is defined as the volume per unit
weight of dry air. The specific density of the moist air is equal to the
reciprocal of its specific volume
PSYCHROMETRIC CHART

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 10 20 • t 30
Dry bulb temperature n °C

Construction
The thermodynamic properties of the dry air-water vapor mixture are
frequently needed in analyzing grain-drying problems. To alleviate the
frequent necessity of making the time-consuming calculations, special
charts containing the values of the most common thermodynamic
properties of moist air have been prepared. These are called
psychrometric charts.
There are a number of psychrometric charts in use. The charts differ
with respect to the barometric pressure, the temperature range, the
number of thermodynamic properties included, and the choice of
coordinates.
Use of the Psychrometric Chart

Psychrometric charts give the following thermodynamic properties of

moist air at one atmosphere:
(1) Dry-bulb temperature,
(2) Wet-bulb temperature,
(3) Dew point (or saturation) temperature,
(4) Humidity ratio,
(5) Relative humidity,
(6) Specific volume, and
(7) Enthalpy.
If two of these properties are known, the state point of the air can, in
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general, be determined on the chart and the other properties found by
reading the values of the appropriate lines which pass through the point.
Sensible Heating and Cooling
Several processes relative to grain conditioning can be represented
conveniently on the psychrometric chart. During sensible heating and
cooling of the air at constant humidity ratio, heat is added to or withdrawn
from the drying air in a heat exchanger as in an indirect heater (for grain
drying) or in an evaporator (for grain chilling).
The processes of sensible heating and cooling are represented on the
psychrometric chart by straight horizontal lines parallel to the abscissa
(Fig. 2.3), and result in changes in the dry and wet-bulb temperatures, the
enthalpy, the specific volume and the relative humidity of the moist air.
No change occurs in the humidity ratio, dew point temperature and vapor
pressure of the moist air.

Heating with Humidifying

In most heated-air grain-drying systems, energy is added to the air by
direct combustion of gas in the air. During this process not only heat but
also a small amount of water vapor is added to the air. The result of this
heating and humidifying process is that the enthalpy, the humidity ratio,
the vapor pressure, the dry-bulb, wet-bulb and dew point temperatures,
and the specific volume of the air are increased. The change in the relative
humidity is determined by the relative amounts of energy and water
vapor added to the air. In grain-drying installations, the relative humidity
of the drying air decreases during the combustion of a fuel in the heater
(Fig. 2.4).

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Cooling with Dehumidifying
In the process of grain chilling, air is often cooled to below the dew point
temperature by passing it over an evaporator. Since the air is saturated
with water vapor at the dew point temperature, water condenses out of the
air as soon as its temperature drops below T dp. The humidity ratio of the air
will then be decreased, as will the dew point, wet-bulb and dry-bulb
temperatures and the enthalpy and specific volume. The cooling and
dehumidifying process is illustrated in Fig. 2.5.

Drying
The drying of a column of grain can be considered an adiabatic process.
This implies that the heat required for evaporation of the grain moisture is
supplied solely by the drying air, without transfer of heat by conduction or
radiation from the surroundings. As the air passes through the wet grain
mass, a large part of the sensible heat of the air is transformed into latent
heat as a result of the increasing amount of water held in the air as vapor.
During the adiabatic drying process there is a decrease in the dry-bulb
temperature, together with an increase in the humidity ratio and relative
humidity, the vapor pressure and the dew point temperature. The enthalpy
and the wet-bulb temperature remain practically constant during the
adiabatic drying process. The process of grain drying is illustrated in Fig.
2.6.

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 Mixing of Two Airstreams.
In a number of continuous-flow grain dryers two streams of air with
different mass flow rates, temperatures, and humidity ratios are mixed.
The condition of the resulting mixture can be determined directly on the
ASHRAE psychrometric charts.
Consider two air streams with dry mass flow rates of ml and m2,
temperatures Tl and T2 and humidity ratios Wi and W2. The mixture will
have a dry mass flow rate of m 3, a temperature of T3 and a humidity ratio
of W3. The mass and energy balances for this process are:
ml + m2 = m3
m l W l + m2W2 = m3W3
m l h l + m2h2 = m 3 h 3
Eliminating m3 yields:
M 1 (h 3 -h 1 ) = m 2 ( h 2 - h3)
m l ( W 3 - W l ) = m 2 ( W 2 - W3)
and thus:

Re-arranging gives:

The condition of the mixture of the two air streams therefore lies on a
straight line joining ( h 1 , W1) and (h2, W2) on the h-W psychrometric chart.
The point ( h 3 , W3) can be found algebraically or by applying the rule of the
congruent right triangles directly on the psychrometric chart. The mixing
process is illustrated in Fig. 2.7.

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EXAMPLE 1
Air at 30°C and 10% relative humidity enters an evaporative cooler where
moisture is evaporated until the temperature reaches 21°C. What is the
relative humidity of the air as it leaves?

Example 2
Steam is added to air at 30°C and 10% relative humidity until the temperature
reaches 38°C and the humidity ratio (W) is 18 g water/kg dry air. How much
water is added to one kilogram of air?

Example 3

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 CHAPTER 10
ELEMENTS OF FOOD PLANT DESIGN

THE PREPROJECT
Plant design projects require the completion of a preliminary study known as the preproject
(avant-projet) or feasibility study. The preproject is a study carried out before the design and
erection of the plant. The objectives of the preproject are:
a) To evaluate the economic feasibility of the project, including the cost of design,
engineering, and running-in. To provide a sensibility analysis, in order to define the effect
of different factors (such as cost of raw materials, market movement, cost of equipment,
technology, etc.) on the rentability of the project.
b) To evaluate the technological feasibility of the project: existing know-how, intellectual
property issues, availability of adequately prepared personnel, compatibility with the past
trade, brands and culture of the enterprise, etc.

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 c) To provide a decision-making process for the definition of major specifications that
constitutes the basis for the project. Among the most important of these are decisions that
refer to the location of the plant and its production plan
The conclusions and decisions of the preproject constitute the basic specifications for the design
and erection of the plant and are communicated to the project manager.
PROCESS DESIGN, DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROCESS FLOW DIAGRAMS
The project is now scheduled as two parallel but coordinated activities, namely process design
and building design.Project scheduling, with the objective of shortening erection time and
optimization of resources, is an essential phase of the project.
Process engineering starts with the development, calculation, evaluation, and design of the
production process. It is the response to the question “How to?.” By and large it is based on the
food engineering and food technology knowledge of the designer. The first design operation is the
development of the process flow-diagram (flow-sheet), which is the graphical representation of
the entire processing.

The first and simplest type of flow diagram is the “block diagram” where the different operations
of the process are represented as rectangular blocks, interconnected by arrows representing the
flow of material from one operation to the next
Following is a short analysis of the process:
a) Reception: The raw material is received in dump trucks holding each 10–25 tons of
conditioned potatoes. (Potatoes are stored at 5–7°C. About 4–7 days before processing
they are “conditioned” by increasing the storage temperature to 12–15°C in order to
decrease the reducing sugar content.) The trucks will be weighed on arrival and after
dumping. A 50-kg sample will be taken for quality evaluation (dry mater content,
reducing sugars, and size as number of potatoes in 10 kg). The load will be dumped and
carried to the next operation by a water current (fluming). Wet conveying also serves as
prewashing and removal of stones and dirt
b) Washing: The potatoes will be elevated to the drum washer where they will be washed by
water jets. Removal of surface dirt will be completed by conveying the potatoes on a
rotating brush conveyor.
c) Sizing: The washed potatoes fall on a roller conveyor with variable distance between the
roller for size classification. The undersize potatoes are removed and collected in a
hopper. The undersize potatoes are sold to a co-producer for processing of instant mash
potato flakes.
d) Peeling: Of the various peeling options the batch steam peeling method has been selected.
The potatoes are elevated to the peeler feeding bin. Weighed portions of potatoes are
introduced into a revolving pressure vessel. The vessel is closed and high pressure steam
(1.5 MPa) is admitted while the vessel is rotated. After a fixed time, rotation is stopped,
the pressure is released, the vessel closure is opened and the potatoes are discharged into
the dry-skinner.
e) Dry-skinning: The dry-skinner consists of a rotating cylindrical screen where the
loosened peels are removed by friction, without water. The waste potato skins will be
conveyed to a hopper and discarded (animal feed).
f) Inspection: The de-skinned potatoes are inspected on a belt conveyor. Unpeeled and
defective potatoes are manually removed.
g) Cutting: The potatoes are cut into strips of cross section determined by market demand.
Several methods of cutting are available. In our case the “hydraulic cutter” has been
selected. The potatoes are carried by a fast (about 100 km/h) water current in conical

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 pipes and pressed against a rectangular grid of knives (see also Section 6.6.6 for the
advantages of this method of cutting).
h) Washing and dewatering: Although the hydraulic cutting method removes most of the
starch liberated by cutting, an additional washing step will be applied by spraying the cut
strips with water while conveying them on a vibrator. Excess surface water is removed by
vibration and a current of air. Starch will be recovered from the wash water as a by-
product,
i) Slivers (too thin slices) and nubbins (strips of insufficient length) will be removed by
sizing conveyer adapted to this operation.
j) The Strips are conveyed on a vibrating conveyer to an automatic optical sorters where
defective units are detected and removed.
k) Blanching: The strips are blanched in hot (75°C) water for 10–20 min. The objective of
blanching at this point of the process is to inactivate phenol-oxidases in order to prevent
browning discoloration, to remove reducing sugars in order to prevent excess Maillard-
type coloration, to shorten frying time by performing part of the cooking.
l) Cooling: The blanched strips are immediately refreshed by cold water.
m) De-watering: Surface water is removed by vibration and a current of air.
n) Drying: The stripes are partially dried by dry and hot air. Predrying before frying results
in a crisper product and reduces frying time and oil intake of the fries.
o) Par-frying: 85% of the production will be partially fried (oil-blanched) in vegetable oil at
180°C or less for a few minutes. The par-fried product is intended for restaurant chains
and may be submitted to additional treatment following client specification (such as
flavoring, spraying with a solution of dextrose, etc.). It is intended for final frying before
serving at the restaurant. When producing fully fried potato the frying time will be
increased.
p) De-fatting: Surface oil will be removed by vibration and air current.
q) Quick-freezing: The product is individually quick frozen (IQF).
r) The product is weighed and packed in bags (10 kg for par-fried, 1 kg for fully fried). The
bags are boxed, paletted, and transferred to the frozen storage area (-18°C)

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It is important that all equipment which is used to handle foods is designed to be easily cleaned,
to reduce the risk of product contamination. Hygienic design of equipment is described by Holm
(1980) and Romney (1988). The principles of sanitary equipment design are incorporated into
good practice guides (for example Anon., 1967). These can be summarized as follows:

 equipment surfaces that are in contact with food should be inert to the food being
processed and must not migrate to, or be absorbed by, the food
 surfaces should be smooth and non-porous to prevent accumulations of food and bacteria
 surfaces should either be accessible for cleaning and inspection, or able to be easily
disassembled for manual cleaning and inspection. If cleaned without disassembly, it
should be demonstrated that results are similar to manual cleaning
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There is no single ‘model’ layout for plant and equipment, but five patterns are commonly used:
1) straight line – for relatively simple processes containing few pieces of equipment
2) serpentine (or ‘zig-zag’) – where the production line is increased for a given floor area by
‘bending back’ on itself
3) U-shaped – used when a process is required to place the finished product in the same
general area as the starting point
4) circular – used when a part-processed or finished product is required in exactly the same
place where it started
5) odd-angle – where there is no recognizable pattern, but where short flow lines are needed
between a group of related operations, where handling is mechanized or where space
limitations will not permit another layout

Following are some of the properties of a good layout:

1) Compatibility with the process. Equipment pieces are located according to the processing
sequence.
2) Efficient and safe transport of materials from one unit to the next according to the
processing sequence. Such transport is secured by gravity, various types of conveyors,
elevators, piping and pumps (for liquid), etc.
3) Easy and safe accessibility of control elements (valves, switches, indicators, control
panels, etc.).
4) Easy and safe accessibility of equipment for cleaning and maintenance.
5) Efficient utilization of floor area.
6) Shortest possible travel of materials and labor.
7) Safe movement of materials and labor.
8) Separation of areas presenting elevated risk of contamination (dirty areas) and/ or
unacceptable working condition (odorous emanations, inflammable or explosive
environment, excessive noise, etc.).
9) Compliance with regulatory rules and laws.
10) Avoiding crowdedness. Providing adequate lighting and aeration, creating a clean and
esthetic working environment.
11) Consideration of future expansion. It is important to keep in mind that an increase in the
rate of production does not necessarily require a general increase of floor area. A machine
with double capacity is not necessarily twice as bulky. On the other hand, storage areas
are nearly proportional to the rate of production.

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