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Exp - S10A - Forced Draft Tray Dryer
Exp - S10A - Forced Draft Tray Dryer
OBJECTIVES
THEORY
In many cases, drying of materials is the final operation in the manufacturing process, carried out
immediately prior to packaging or dispatch. Drying refers to the final removal of water, and the
operation often follows evaporation, filtration or crystallization. Drying is carried out for one or
more of the following reason:
To reduce the cost of transport.
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(IV) The air should have the same temperature, humidity, and velocity (both speed and
direction with respect to the sample).
If possible, several tests should be made on samples of different thicknesses. The dry weight
of the sample should also be obtained. The drying rate is calculated from:
dx 1
N =-S (Kg/m2-s).
d A
drying chamber
air blower
heater
orifice in the air duct
a tray
balance
The air flow is controlled by a valve in the blower outlet and its flow rate is measured by a pre-
calibrated orifice meter. Thermometers are placed at the inlet and outlet of the drying chamber.
PROCEDURE
1. Switch on main and balance only. Weigh the empty tray. Tear it to bring reading to zero.
2. Load the tray with brick particles ( ~ 45 gms size: passing through 4.75 mm GI sieve and
retained on 6 mesh BSS seive ).
3. Start the air blower, open the air flow control valve partially to adjust 3 cm level difference
on manometer, record corresponding air flow rate using anemometer (it will be
approximately 0.3 m/s). Start the heaters 1 & 2 and let the system achieve temperature ( ~ 95
o
C ). If required switch on or off heater 1 and 2 as and when required. Throughout the
experiment, maintain a steady temperature between 95 to 97oC.
2
4. When the desired conditions of temperature and air velocity is reached note the brick
weight, put 30 - 35 mL water (using a dropper) in it to give desired initial moisture content.
5. Note the weight of brick plus water. Start the stop watch.
6. Keep recording the weight with time at about 1 min interval initially and then at 2 min
intervals until readings remain unchanged..
7. Drying is assumed to be complete when at least 3 consecutive readings are unchanged.
8. The temperatures at the inlet and outlet of the drying chamber and the air flow rate
(manometer reading fixed across the orifice) are recorded at least three times during the
course of a run to give average operating conditions.
NOMENCLATURE:
A = drying surface area, m2
G = mass velocity of gas, kg/m2
N = drying rate, kg/m2-s
Nc = constant drying rate, kg/m2-s
S = mass of dry solid (kg)
Tg = absolute temp. of gas (dry bulb), k
X = moisture constant of a solid (kg of water/kg of dry solid)
Xc = Critical moisture content.
= time, s
R = Manometric difference, m
h = head, m
m = density of manometric fluid kg/m3
a = density of air kg/m3
ao = area of orifice, m2 .
OBSERVATIONS
Known data
OBSERVATIONS
DATA AQUISITION
Plot Moisture content X vs time and draw a line through all the points. Fit a second degree
polynomial to the X vs data & obtain slope dX/ d corresponding to various values of . Then use
these dX/ d values to calculate drying rate N .
X
Moisture content
(kg of water per
kg of dry solid) Slope = -dx/d
Time,4 s
DATA REDUCTION
Plot drying rate N (kg/m2-s) vs moisture content X (kg of water/kg of dry solid (Drying curve).
From this plot, critical moisture (Xc) content is obtained.
Nc
Constant
rate
N
Falling
rate
XCX
CALCULATIONS
1. Head, h R m 1 ---------------------- (1)
a
0.61* a * 2 * g * h
G o
* a ----------------------- (2)
a
2
1 o2
a p
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3. Moisture content present in solid,
W S
X ---------------------- (3)
S
dx S * X
N S Kg/m2-s
d * A A *
Head, h = ------------ m
EXPECTED RESULTS
1.Plot a graph of moisture content X Vs time .
2.Plot drying rate N (kg/m2-s) Vs moisture content X (kg of water/kg of dry solid,
Drying curve). From this plot obtain critical moisture (Xc).
REFERENCES
Treybal, R.H.: “Mass-Transfer Operations”, 3rd ed., McGraw-Hill, NY, 1981.