A spray dryer is a machine used for drying utilizing a spray. To achieve evaporation and create a free-flowing dry powder with regulated average particle size, a spray dryer combines a heated gas with an atomized (sprayed) liquid stream within a vessel (drying chamber). ALAQUA is a spray dryer supplier along with other processing equipment supplier such as the evaporator, crystallizer, solvent recovery systems, etc.
Some of the worldwide problems of the spray drying powder and their solutions are:
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Powder Consistency or low-quality powder creating Bulk Density Issue:
The reason for the powder build-up could be dryer configuration, powder formulation and wider spray angle use, and in a lot of cases the design of the nozzle. Scorched particle deposits and product build-up on the chamber compromise the quality of the powder. The solution to this could be a flat cap profile as it provides a lower outer face profile that reduces the build-up.
Another reason could be the wear part alignment. The designs of the traditional nozzles have problems in alignment between orifice and swirl chamber. This decentralization of parts creates problems in the consistent performance of the spray through drying operations. The spray performance can be increased by the concentric clasp technology.
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Low Productivity
Another reason could be nozzle bearding, this can also be caused due to dryer configuration, wider spray dryer usage and powder formulation, and occurs mostly due to nozzle design deficiency. These things increase the frequency of clean-up and lead to a production delay. Stopping production in the short run and cleaning could be a big reason for lower productivity. The solution again is the flat cap profile as its design provides a lower outer face profile that reduces bearding. It also means that fewer cleanup dryers shut down, the bearding process slows down providing a longer run of nozzles.
Latest Blog: What is a Spray Dryer and How does a Spray Dryer Work?
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Keeping Hygiene Standards High
The traditional spray nozzles have an o-ring groove cap that makes them difficult to clean. The chamber design of the conventional cap has out-of-reach and tight corners that suppress unreachable contaminants. The solution to this could be easy to clean nozzles that can produce better hygiene results. The spray dry industry now can have an easy and increased level of hygiene due to a smooth internal profile.
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Higher Production Cost
Dated disassembly procedures such as disassembling the baked nozzles could be challenging. The usage of impact tools like hammers can result in high breakage and could increase the cost of wear parts. The solution to this could be making the disassembly easier. The procedure does not necessarily require the impact tools and hence the minimal breakage can reduce the cost of operation.
Another cause of the higher production cost could be unprotected sealing faces and damaged thread. It is hard for an ordinary thread system to resist impact damage. Furthermore, while handling, unprotected sealing faces can be damaged easily, which results in re-welding and cutting nozzle bodies. The solution for the problem could be robust cap protection skirts and heavy duty threads. The heavy duty threads can protect during the lance handling and is resistant to normal impact damage. The robust cap protection skirt is designed to protect the damage from the o-ring seal groove.
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Safety Concerns
Another problem is radial o-ring due to assembly. O-ring drag and ripping can compromise essential sealing in conventional radial seal systems during assembly. The solution to this problem is axial seal design spray dry. When the cap is fully attached to the body, the axial o-ring design can only reach the sealing face. And since there is no pulling and ripping during assembly, there are fewer chances of leakage.
Troubleshooting Baghouse Problems
Maintaining trouble-free operations of the baghouse is a problem for many operations professionals in charge of spray dryers. If your spray dryer is having baghouse issues, here is a list of things to look for to figure out what’s wrong.
To get back to the basics, remember that a baghouse is a filter. Its goal is to collect the product and comply with emissions regulations while enabling your spray dryer to function continuously. In this explanation of baghouse issues, the medium filter will be very essential. The stainless steel vessel which is the baghouse is essentially a filter housing.
Keep in mind that, unlike other baghouses and nuisance dust collectors, a baghouse on a spray dryer might have a rather high moisture environment inside. If your product contains carbs or sugars, the air in the baghouse is frequently at or near the product’s sticking point, which is officially known as the glass transition temperature. If your product contains fats, your baghouse temperatures may be close to the melting point.
Typically, a 16 oz polyester felt filter bag is used in a food or dairy spray dryer. Other fabrics and weights are available, but this is the most popular. Although there are a variety of coatings and surface treatments available, a basic bag is usually enough. Beware of any additives in your product, such as lecithin, which may be introduced to an external fluid bed to instantize and solubilize your product, since additives must be taken into account for the baghouse to work properly.
When purchasing baghouse bags, keep in mind that not all bags are created equal; beware of less cost bags, especially those with surface coatings. These may work great in most situations, but when used in the harsh atmosphere of a hot, damp spray dryer, they can cause issues.
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