DRYERS AND DRYING PROCESS

WHAT IS DRYER?
Drying plays a significant role in industry. Industrial dryers use a range of temperature
settings and drying theories. The most popular kind of dryer circulates warm air over
wet products while using steam, gas, or hot water as heat sources. The air becomes
more humid as it absorbs moisture from the wet product, and the energy in this stream
could make it effective as a heat source. It is standard practice to dehumidify or exhaust
this humid air. Heat can be drawn from the humid air using a heat pump. The air is
dehumidified and chilled. The temperature of the extracted heat can be raised and
utilized to warm the dryer.
History of Industrial Dryer
Drying has been conducted since time immemorial with the main purpose of preserving
food and agricultural produce. This chapter provides a concise history of drying of
pharmaceutical products.
The Chinese book on roots and grasses Pen T'Sao, written by Emperor Shen Nung as
early as 2500 BC, mentioned as many as 365 drugs obtained from dried parts of
medicinal plants, many of which are still in use even today. The chapter also gives brief
histories of some popular drying techniques for drugs and other relevant molecules.
The selected drying technologies discussed are: freeze drying, spray drying,
fluidized-bed drying, and supercritical drying. Spray drying is probably the most mature
alternative technology to freeze drying and can be applied to the production of many
pharmaceutical products.
Henry W. Altorfer invented and patented an electric clothes dryer in 1937. J. Ross
Moore, an inventor from North Dakota, developed designs for automatic clothes dryers
and published his design for an electrically operated dryer in 1938.
A man named Pochons was a French inventor, and he created the machine for drying
clothing over an open fire. It was called a ventilator and was, in essence, a metal drum
with holes. However, his invention didn't go so well at first. Clothing was prone to getting
smoky and sometimes burned.
Types of Indstrial Dryer
● Direct Dryers
● Air Dryers
● Conveyor Dryers
● Food Dryers
● Rolling Bed Dryer
● Indirect Dryers
● Radiant Dryers
● Batch Dryers
● Continuous Dryers
● Direct Dryer

Direct dryers
transfer heat to the material by convection. The heat transfer medium is forced to have
direct contact with the material to be dried. A stream of hot air or inert gas serves as the
heat transfer medium, which is blown or circulated around and within the material. This
hot air carries and supplies latent heat to vaporize the absorbed moisture. The
evaporated moisture is then picked up by the blown air.

Air Dryers
Air dryers are made to take moisture out of the air, particularly compressed air. Moisture
levels in ambient air range from 30% to 50%. When air is compressed, the moisture
content rises to 100% in a tiny volume of air. High moisture levels in industrial facilities
can harm delicate machinery and equipment and result in process contamination, early
failure, wear, and corrosion, which are reasons why the moisture levels must be
reduced.
Conveyor Dryer
In production or storage operations, conveyor dryers are a continuous drying system
that transfers items along a number of drying stations. Products are put on the conveyor
and moved through hot air zones with temperature and accuracy controls. The drying
product is blown heated air either upward or downward on the conveyor belt, which is a
type of mesh or web. A conveyor drier typically has three or more drying zones and is
60 feet long.

Food Dryers
The two most important aspects of food dryers are their capacity to precisely regulate
drying temperature in order to prevent product damage and their utilization of just heat
energy in order to preserve the environment. All food dryers feature a consistent heat
source, strong circulating fans to maintain heat, and at least 90% energy efficiency.
Rolling Bed Dryer
Large-scale biomass drying is the purpose of rolling bed dryers, often known by the
German abbreviation WB-T. For effective product drying, they integrate bulk product
flow, heat transmission, and continuous movement. The main component of rolling bed
dryers is a sizable, lengthy cylindrical drum that rotates on its vertical axis. The drum
and cylinder are used to roll materials through to be dried. The rapid and efficient drying
of the material is made possible by the steady and continuous movement.

Indirect Dryers
Indirect dryers transfer heat to the material by conduction. The heat transfer medium is
separated from the material by a conductive partition. The material to be dried is
contained inside a drying chamber and is heated from the chamber walls. The latent
heat required to vaporize the absorbed moisture is transferred through the wall. The
evaporated moisture is then carried up by the surrounding air. The surrounding or
carrier air required by indirect dryers is much lower compared to direct dryers. Indirect
dryers are used in drying sensitive products, such as pharmaceutical products and
combustible materials since the flow of air circulating the product is relatively low. These
dryers prevent the risk of contamination during the process. They are also used in batch
drying of relatively low production volumes.
Radiant Dryers
Radiant dryers transfer heat by directly emitting electromagnetic waves to the material
being dried. These electromagnetic waves carry thermal energy or heat that penetrates
deep into the material. The absorbed heat is conducted to the moisture causing it to
evaporate and combine with the surrounding air. Little heat is lost to the surrounding air,
which makes the drying process contactless and low risk for contamination. Like indirect
dryers, radiant dryers do not require large airflow and may only need a small blower.
They are cleaner and more environmentally friendly compared to convective and
conductive dryers. Radiant dryers are used on adhesives, paints, and coatings on part
surfaces.

Two Types of Radiant Dryers

Microwave Dryers
A microwave dryer system consists of a microwave generator, applicator or wave
guides, microwave unit, and a form of control system. Since microwave dryers are a
non-contact and no heat drying system, they can be used in a wide variety drying
applications from paper products to pharmaceuticals. Microwave dryers come in several
forms from free standing dryers to large conveyor dryers with each form designed to
meet specific drying needs.
Infrared Dryers
Infrared dryers use high end infrared radiators as their heat source, which is highly
efficient, low response time, supplies even heating, and has significantly low energy
consumption provided in a compact package. The process used by infrared dryers does
not rely on heated air or water to complete the drying process but uses radiation energy
from a hot element in an infrared lamp to lower the temperature of the substrate. High
power densities are produced in small areas, which is followed by rapid cool down times
due to the lower thermal mass from the heating element.

Batch or Continuous Mode Industrial Dryers

Batch Dryers
The term batch dryer is a general descriptor that covers several versions of high volume
dryers capable of efficiently drying large numbers of parts in one single cycle. Batch
dryers can have conveyor systems where parts pass through on webbed belts that
allow heated air to flow around the parts through the webs in the dryer. Other forms of
batch dryers have a drying chamber with brackets to hold baskets of parts. It is form of
dryer that is manually operated but has a control system that monitors the drying
chamber.
Batch dryers process a fixed volume of material at a particular drying duration. A high
volume, number, or quantity of materials passes through the drying chamber. The
quantity is limited by the holding capacity of the dryer. The dried materials are unloaded
automatically or manually to make room for the next batch. Batch dryers are used in
relatively low production volumes. Typical forms of batch dryers are tray dryers, drum
dryers, or rotary dryers.
Continuous Dryers
A continuous dryer is designed to continually dry a constant flow of products, which may
be grains, completed parts, pharmaceuticals, or various forms of food products. As with
other forms of dryers, continuous dryers take several forms and can include transport
chains, carts, rotary pumps, and conveyor belts. The drying process includes the
movement of materials through a dryer chamber that has different zones that provide
chemical and physical drying processes.

Types of Batch Dryers

Tray Dryers
Tray dryers consist of several trays, which contain the materials to be dried, stacked
inside the drying chamber. Air is used as a heat transfer medium that is forced to move
inside the chamber. Blowers facilitate air movement. The air gains thermal energy when
it contacts the heating coils. The heated air is blown on top of the material, causing the
moisture to diffuse and vaporize. A portion of the moisture-carrying air leaves through
the ventilation duct, while the rest is recirculated in the chamber together with a stream
of fresh, dry air. The temperature and velocity of the air may be adjusted depending on
a given product and operational requirements.
Tray dryers are the simplest type of industrial dryers; they have inexpensive initial costs
and consume less space. They are easy to operate and maintain. However, the drying
time is typically long. They may not be suitable for powdered solids.
Vacuum Dryers
Vacuum dryers operate at a low (vacuum) pressure to hasten the vaporization of
moisture or solvent absorbed by the material. The decrease in operating pressure
depresses the boiling point of the absorbed liquid; hence, these dryers operate at a
lower temperature than other industrial dryers.
Vacuum dryers are used for heat-sensitive, hygroscopic, combustible, and granular
products. They are used in food and pharmaceutical products to keep nutrients from
degrading in high temperatures. They remove large quantities of moisture efficiently and
have fast drying times.

Pan Dryers
Pan dryers are equipped with an agitator or a mill that stirs wet materials inside a
jacketed vessel. The agitator or mill rotates slowly to increase the drying rate, which is
moisture removed per unit time per unit area, to ensure uniform heat distribution and
avoid products sticking to the walls. Pan dryers are operated at atmospheric or vacuum
pressure and are used for drying heat-sensitive, viscous, and sticky products.
Freeze Dryers
Freeze dryers consist of refrigeration equipment, a drying chamber, holding trays, and a
vacuum pump. The sample is first frozen to at least its melting temperature to convert
the moisture and solvent within the material into a solid phase. The vacuum pump is
then activated to decrease the pressure inside the chamber. Heat transfer under low
pressure causes the solidified moisture or solvent to transform into vapor. The vacuum
pump draws the vapor sublimed off the material. The freeze dryer will continue to run to
drive off the moisture or solvent bound to the material.

Bin Dryers
Bin dryers are a form of batch dryer that consist of a large cylindrical or rectangular
drying chamber that has a wire mesh bottom. Air is drawn into the bottom portion of the
dryer and blown up through the wire mesh over the product to be dried. The walls of a
bin dryer are tightly sealed to prevent heated air from escaping the drying chamber. The
door to the dryer that allows fresh air in to be heated is fully opened or partially open to
regulate the level of circulation of heated air in the dryer.