Simulation of an industrial spray dryer and prediction of off-design performance

Abstract

A computational fluid dynamic model along with a new drying kinetics model was employed to simulate the spray-drying performance of an industrial-scale co-current spray dryer for a relatively heat-sensitive product. Predictions are compared with experimental measurements made on a full-scale spray dryer. Satisfactory agreement was achieved. Predictions of zones where deposits are likely to occur are close to those in operational experiments. Off-design performance predictions were also made to show the effects of various operating parameters on the dryer performance, which can be used to improve the dryer efficiency and minimize wall deposits.