Aeroglide Corporation Operating Parameters Chapter 6 ADJUSTING CONVEYOR DRIER OPERATION In order to properly adjust the drying rate in the drier, it is important to have a basic understanding of the variables, which affect drying. This section describes the key variables, which affect drier operation and how to adjust them, PRODUCT MOISTURE AND PRODUCTION RATE. The drier is designed to remove moisture from the product (and cool the product if a cooler is included). This means that a high moisture content product run at a low production rate may be more difficult to dry than a lower moisture content product run at a higher production rate. Necessary to examine the drying process in terms of the amount of water evaporated and how difficult itis to evaporate that water from the product, rather than in terms of production rate. If @ process change is made upstream from the drier (at an extruder or coater for example) that results in a higher product moisture level into the drier, adjustments will be required at the drier to evaporate the added moisture even if the production rate has not changed. AIR TEMPERATURE The temperature of the air in the drier is usually the primary variable used to control the drying rate. If the air temperature is increased, the added heat will cause more of the liquid water in the product to be evaporated and turned into water vapor. This water vapor will then be carried away from the product by the air flowing past the product. Lowering the air temperature will decrease the drying rate. If the product is coming out of the drier too wet, increasing the air temperature in the drier will bring the discharge product moisture content back down to the proper value. Many products have either maximum temperature limitations or minimum temperature requirements. Although the temperature of the product in the drier is determined to a great extent by the air temperature, itis important to understand that the product in the drier is typically at a much lower temperature than the air temperature. This is due to the water evaporating from the surface of the product. This evaporation tends to cool the product. If, however, the product is dried to a very low moisture content, near or approaching bone dry, the evaporation rate is reduced and the product can approach the air temperature Operating Parameters Page 1 of 4 Revised 3:26.02Aeroglide Corporation Operating Parameters Chapter 6 RETENTION TIME The retention time, or time that the product spends in the drier, is also a key variable used to control drying. The retention time is determined by the conveyor bed speed(s). If the beds are slowed down, the product will have more time in the drier to dry. Simply increasing the conveyor bed speed will not increase the production rate. The result is that the product spends less time in the drier and hence comes out wetter. To maximize production at the lowest possible air temperature, it is necessary to run the conveyor beds as slowly as possible and hence the beds as deep as possible (the next section will describe potential problems resulting from exceeding optimum bed depth). To run higher production rates, speeding up the beds will make the product wetter at the drier discharge and necessitate running higher temperatures. In general, the best way to run the drier is to run the beds as slowly as possible without letting the product get too deep on the beds). For driers, which include integral coolers, care must be taken when changing the retention time since cooling time depends on retention time. The longer the product spends in the cooler, the more it will be cooled. AIR FLOW The drier airflow has been engineered to be as uniform as possible and to be at a velocity that optimizes drying while minimizing the possibility of product and fines becoming airborne. Any changes, which reduce airflow in the drier, will cause a reduction in capacity. For example, removing or leaving open one or more of the internal doors in the drier will cause less air to flow through the product and drying capacity will decrease. Airflow considerations become very important when determining optimum product depth on the conveyor bed(s). Some products will tend to stick together and form clusters or clumps if they are stacked too deep, particularly when they enter the drier and are at their wettest. If this clustering becomes too severe, airflow will be reduced through the clusters or through the whole bed. This will reduce the capacity of the drier. It is important to observe products running in the drier to determine if they are clustering, ‘One potential problem is the transfer of clumps of product to the subsequent beds in a multi- pass or multi-stage drier. Air will not flow through these clumps on the subsequent beds and hence the product in the clumps will not dry. Operating Parameters Page 2 of 4 Revised 3-26-02Aeroglide Corporation Operating Parameters Chapter 6 PRODUCT CHARACTERISTICS The characteristics (size, coating, fat content, etc.) of the product being dried must be understood in order to properly adjust the drier. Typically, a large product is harder to dry than a small product; however, the small product may require shallower bed depths. Some formulations may be more difficult to dry than others. A sticky product will tend to form clumps. All of these characteristics need to be evaluated when adjusting the drier. AIR HUMIDITY Air humidity is an important variable that affects drying. If the air in the drier is saturated with water vapor, it will not be able to accept the water being evaporated from your product. Wet air must be exhausted from the drier and replaced by dry air from the room or some other source. Hence, the need for exhaust fan(s) on the drier. If the drier is evaporating a lot of water, it will Fequire more exhaust than if it evaporates little water. Also, on a hot humid summer day, the “dry’ air coming into the drier to replace the wet air is already carrying a lot of water, therefore more exhaust will be required than on a cold dry winter day. Typically the drier exhaust and make-up dampers are set to cover the worst case conditions which will be the highest production rate on the most humid day. The ‘wet bulb” temperature is a measure used to determine the humidity level of the air in the drier. From evaluation of the process, the “wet bulb” temperature has been determined that will allow the drier to property dry the product while optimizing energy consumption. The Aeroglide ‘commissioning technician (engineer) will adjust the dampers on the drier to get the proper humidity level in the drier when the drier is commissioned. The wet bulb temperature and resultant damper settings should be checked and adjusted periodically afterwards. Information regarding how to determine “wet bulb” temperature is included in the appendix of this manual. IHfurther assistance is required, the customer service department should be consulted. Operating Parameters Pago 3 of 4 Revised 3-26-02