SIMULTANEOUS HEAT AND MASS TRANSFER

Ch.E 402
Saqib Javed

Drying of Solids

McCabe Smith, Unit Operations in Chemical Engineering, CH 24 [Drying].

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 Drying of Solids
It is the removal of water or liquid from solids
to reduce the residual liquid to an acceptable
low value.
It is the final step of unit operation.
After drying, usually packing is done.
Bone dry Material: A material or the product
that contains no liquid contents.

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 Powders
Crystals
Solid Granules
Slabs

Inside the solids >>> in the form of solvent

(Polymer Sheet)

Liquid On Solid Surface >>> Salt Crystal

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 Dryers Classification

Solids directly exposed to gas/air

Adiabatic Direct Dryers

Solids get heat from an external

Non- medium
Condensing steamthrough some
Adiabatic metal surface
Indirect Dryers

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 Adiabatic Dryers

Through Circulation
drying
Cross Circulation drying

Gas Fluidize the Solid

Slow gas stream High Gas Velocity

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 Temperature Pattern in Dryers
Temperature Variation depends on:
Nature of feedstock
Liquid content
Temperature of the heating medium
Drying time
Allowable final Temperature of Solids

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Temperature Pattern Batch Dryer

Temperature of the solids rise

rapidly till the vaporization
temperature.
(Tv<Th) Most of the liquid
vaporized at the Tv.
[Longer Duration at Tv]
Finally, temperature rises above
Tv.
Drying time may be seconds or
hours

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 Note!!!
In non-adiabatic dryer:
Tv is the boiling Point

In adiabatic dryer:
Tv is the wet bulb temperature

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 Temp. Pattern Continuous Dryer
Hot gas

In steady state Operation,

temperature at any point in
continuous dryer remains
constant.
Temperature varies along the
dryer length.
Solid Inlet

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 Heat Transfer in Dryers

Function of Heat Supplied in dryer:

Heat the Feed [Tv].
Vaporize the Liquid.
Heat the solids to their final temperature.
Heat the vapor to their final temperature.

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 Calculation of Heat Duty
Initial Liquid Content

Final Liquid Content

Mass of bone dry

solids

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 Heat Transfer Coefficient

Volumetric Heat Transfer Coefficient:

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 Heat Transfer Units
For Adiabatic dryer: [Rotary dryer]

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 Mass Transfer in Dryers
In drying of solids, mass is transferred from:
surface of the solid to the gas.
through interior of the solid to the gas.
Resistance to mass transfer may control the drying
rate.
From the gas stand-point: it is like the
adiabatic humidification.

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 Phase Equilibria
Equilibrium data for wet solids is given as
the relationship between the relative
humidity of gas and liquid contents of the
solids.

Higher
humidity
air

Wet
Solid
Lower
Humid
Air

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 Equilibrium Moisture
Air entering in dryer >> contains Humidity?

The portion of the water in wet solids that cannot

be removed by inlet air due to its humidity is
called Equilibrium Moisture.
The definite amount of moisture remaining in a
solid after long exposure to an excess amount of
air after which no further drying will take place.

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 Free Moisture
The difference between the total water
content of solid and the equilibrium water
content.

Equilibrium Moisture
Content

Total Moisture
Content

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 Bound Water
It is an extremely thin layer of water surrounding
mineral surfaces.
Water molecules have a strong polarity that
causes the water molecules to bond to each
other and to other charged surfaces.
The strong attraction between these surfaces
causes an extremely thin water film to form on
the material surface.
These water molecules are much less mobile than the
rest of the water in the material.

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 Part of the moisture present in a wet solid to
such an extent to prevent it from developing
its full vapor pressure and from being easily
removed.
Such moisture is described as bound and is
more difficult to remove than unbound water.

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 Unbound Water
If a material contains more water than
indicated by intersection with the 100% RH-
line, the water in excess is called unbound
moisture.
It can exert pressure as high as the its vapor
pressure at the same temperature.

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 Unbound water is easily lost by evaporation until
the equilibrium moisture content of the solid is
reached.
Once the solid reaches its EMC , extending the
time of drying will not change the moisture
content as an equilibrium situation has been
reached.
The only way to reduce the moisture content is to
reduce the RH of the ambient air.
On small scale, desiccators are used.
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 Total Moisture Content
Total amount of moisture in the solid:
bound plus unbound water
or
free moisture plus equilibrium moisture content.

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 Curve 2:
It intersects the 100 % line at 26
% moisture content.
Any sample of wool contains
less than 26 % moisture will be
the bound water.
Sample containing more than
26 % moisture will contain
unbound water.
If 30% RH air is used to dry wool
sample than lowest moisture
content would be???

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 Constant Drying Conditions
Air is circulated over bed of wet solids under
following conditions:
Constant Temperature
Constant Humidity
Constant air velocity
Constant Flow direction

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 Rates of Drying

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 Constant Rate Period
First Major drying period.
May be absent if initial
moisture content is less than a
certain minimum.
Independent of moisture
content.
Continuous film of water over
solid assuming no solid
material.
For non-porous solid, water
removed is superficial water.
For porous solid, water
removed is from interior of the
solid.

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 For parallel
air flow

For
perpendicular
air flow

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 Self Study

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 Critical Moisture Content
The Point terminating the constant rate period
is called Critical Point.
This point indicates that the liquid water is
insufficient to maintain the liquid film over the
drying area.

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 Falling Rate AB constant: Water is transported from
Period interior to the surface to make it
sufficiently wet.
Point B: Surface layer of water recedes
into solid.
Line BC : After Point B; Available mass
transfer from solid to air decreases.
Drying rate is less than constant
period.
Drying rate decreases as the fraction of
drying surface increases.
In First Falling Period, water in the
pores act as continuous phase and th
air acts as dispersed phase.

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 After continuous removal of water
Second Falling Rate from the pores, air occupies the pore
Period volume.
After a certain limit; there is
insufficient water to make
continuous film.
Air continues to fill pores and act as
continuous phase.
Remaining water moves to the
corners and drying rate further
decreases. {Line CD}.
In the second falling period: water
vapor diffuse through solid and heat
of vaporization is transmitted by
conduction through solid.
[Diffusion Dependent].

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 Equation for Diffusion

Diffusivity varies with moisture contents.

Dv is less at small moisture contents.

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 Example

= .
= .

= . /
.
= cm

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 Geankoplis, CH # 9, 9.3A

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 Physical States & Vapor Pressure
Most Practical applications of drying occurs
with water. So, it is necessary to understand
its thermal properties.
Pure water exist in 3 different states (solid ice,
Liquid, Vapor).
Physical state depends on pressure and
temperature.

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 Physical States & Vapor Pressure

AB: liquid & vapor.

AC: Liquid & ice.
AD: ice & vapor.

Point 1-2: Constant

Pressure & Temp.
increase.

Point 3-4: ice

sublimes to vapor.

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 Equilibrium Moisture Content
Non-porous insoluble solid
(2&11): Low EMC
Spongy/biological material:
(2,5&10) High EMC

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 EMC for Food Materials

high RH >> high EMC

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Q: What is the Effect of Temperature on EMC?
A: EMC of a solid decreases with an increase in
temperature.

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At 26.7 oC: Vapor pressure of water is 3.5 kPa.

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= .

= .

= . %

= . %

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 McCabe Smith, Unit operations in
Chemical Engineering, CH 24 (Drying)

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 Calculation of Drying Time
Drying time is the sum of constant drying
period and the falling rate period.
= +
Constant Drying Period:

=
Rearranging and integrating between initial and final moisture
contents.

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 In constant rate period:
R=Rc and t=tc

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Falling Rate Period:

In Falling rate period, when diffusion controls the drying

process. Then Drying rate R is the linear function of X
{For Porous solids}.
= +
=
Put value of dR in eq (1);

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To find slope a:

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 Now add tc and tf to get total drying time.

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 Conversion of Experimental data into
drying curve
(Gean-koplis 9.5B)

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 Experimental data is obtained as total weight of wet solid
at different time period.
Find the total moisture content.

Weight of
wet solid

Find the equilibrium moisture content under constant

drying conditions.
Then, free moisture content X is calculated.

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 Plot the data as free moisture (X) vs time t (hr).

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 To obtain rate of drying curve, slope is determined from
the plot of X vs t.
Then , rate is determined for each point from the
following relation.

Ls is the kg of dry solid and A is the exposed area for

drying.

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 Then plot R vs X to get the drying rate curve.
Identify the constant rate period and the falling period on
the plot.

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