Drying Fundamentals

Tom Grunder
Technical Manager – Drying Systems
Paperchine, Inc. Rockton, IL 61072
What Is “Drying” ? “Wikipedia States”

• Drying is a mass transfer process.

- Consisting of the removal of water by evaporation from a semi-solid.
- This process is often used as a final production step before selling or
packaging
p g gp products.
- To be considered "dried", the final product must be solid, in the form
of a continuous sheet (e.g., paper).
• A source of heat and an agent “air”
air is used to remove the vapor
produced by the process are often involved.
• An indirect technique is drum drying, where a heated surface is
used to provide the energy
energy, and aspirators draw the vapor
outside the room.
Specifically, What is Paper Machine Drying?

• The most expensive process of water removal on the machine.

- 1.25
1 25 kkg water
t / kkg paper removedd iin d
dryers < 1% off ttotal
t l water
t
- 75 to 80% of total water removal cost

• Latent heat transfer derived from steam to water phase change.

- Steam heated pressure vessels are predominate method

• Heat transfer through several resistances to the paper.

• Mass transfer of cellulose held water into the surrounding air.

Relative Water Removal and Cost
Why Address Dryer Section Efficiency?

100
90
80
ve Percentage

70
60
50
40
0
Relativ

30
20
10
0
Forming Press Dryer

Water Removed Cost

Individual Dryer vs. Dryer Section Efficiency

• “Dryer” cylinder, drum or can

- Provides the Heat
• Conduction, Convection & Radiation
- Contact transferred – best with smooth surface
- Air carried – optimal for moisture removal
- Emitted power – least efficient heat transfer to liquid
• Drying processes
- Heat transfer (energy movement)
- Mass transfer (water movement)
• Section Configuration
g
- Double felted two tier
- Single felted two tier
- Single felted single tier
 Revolutionary Dryer Section Milestones

• Steam Cylinder Drying - Dickinson 1817

- Two-Tier, Multi-Tier & Stacked
- Cotton Felts, Grewin Air Systems
• Ai Permeable
Air P bl Fabrics
F b i (Synthetic)
(S th ti ) 1960’
1960’s
- Elimination of Felt/Feeney Dryers
• Serpentine Run 1970 s
1970’s
• Silent or Felt Drive – Eliminate Gears 1983
• N O
No-Open-DrawD D
Dryer SSection
ti 1987
• All Top Felted Dryer Section 1993
Areas Effecting Fundamental Drying Efficiency

• Steam supply
St l andd control
t l conditions
diti
• Dryer cylinder internals and related heat transfer
• Dryer
y shell ppressure limits and operating
p g thermal stress limits
• Dryer external surface conditions and product contact pressure
• Section arrangement dependent evaporation pocket area
• Vapor transfer away from heated product
• Collection and utilization of energy contained in evaporated vapor
• Extent product is dried beyond maximum sellable levels
Typical Steam Heated Paper Dryer Cylinder

Simplex Simplex
Syphon Steamfit
Heat Transfer Resistances Steam to Sheet

Steam

Condensate

Sh t
Sheet

Shell
Temperature Profile
Thru Elements of a "Working" Dryer Shell
Vapor - Liquid
Transition Zone
Sheet

Ts- Saturated Steam

Temperature
T

T - Vapor Pressure
v
Temperature Condensate Layer

Surface Barrier
Surface Barrier (Scale, Amines)
(Dirt, Air)
D
Dryer Sh
Shell
ll
Steam Carried Resistances to Heat Transfer:

• Filming Amines – build up of a flaky crust that is often

accompanied by rust and other debris.

• Superheat
S h t – is
i the
th heat
h t in
i the
th steam
t th t keeps
that k th temperature
the t t
above saturation.

• Non-Condensable Gases – do not transfer heat to the dryer and

typically accumulate in a stagnate area of the dryer.
Heat Transfer Calculation Basics

U = Overall heat transfer

Ht
Hc = Condensate coefficient
Hc
H t = Shell-Sheet coefficient
X
Tv X = Shell thickness
Ts (Vapor)
(Steam) K = Shell conductivity
A = Dryer surface area

Total Heat Transferred:

f U * A ( T s - Tv )
1
U= 1 + X + 1
Hc K H t
Resistances to Dryer Heat Transfer

• Hc = Condensate coefficient
-Condensate depth due to syphon design
-Turbulence as a result of speed and surface roughness
-Turbulence created by Dryer Bars
• Hd = Shell heat transfer coefficient; = (X/K)
-Dependent
p on shell thickness ( X )
-Material heat flow resistance by grade of cast iron ( K )
• Ht = Contact coefficient
-Sheet
Sh t smoothness,
th shell
h ll cleanliness,
l li & felting
f lti arrangementt
-Relative ability for paper fiber to give up moisture
-Ability of moisture to be evaporated, effected by pocket humidity
Condensate Behavior Affects Heat Transfer
Ponding Cascading

Rimming
D
Dryer B
Bars
Dryer Puddle Condensate Depth
Affects Rimming thickness and Torque Requirements
1.0
0.9 5' Dia. Dryer
ss - Inchess

6' Dia. Dryer

0.8
0.7
Rimming Thicknes

06
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
01
0.1
0
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 3.5 5 5.5 6 6.5 7

Dryer Puddling Condensate Depth - Inches

Dryer Section Drive Load at Start-up
B
Bars R
Reduce
d D
Drive
i L Load
d Required
R i d to
t Accelerate
A l t Condensate
C d t

Plain Shell
Load
Dryerr Drive L

Dryer Bars

Rimming Load

Dryer Speed
Resistances to Dryer Heat Transfer
Steam to the Shell Bore

• Hc = Condensate coefficient
- Condensate depth due to syphon design & set-up
- Ponding condition values with bare shell range 650-1000
- Cascading from speed and surface roughness affect values
- Plain bore rimming values range from 65 to 110 based on syphon
- Dryer
y Bars values rangeg from 375 to 450 depending
p g on
publication source
Resistances to Dryer Heat Transfer
Through the Dryer Shell

• Hd = Shell heat transfer coefficient

- Scale or Fibre build-up increases resistance
- Dependent on shell thickness ( X ) inches
• Determined by ASME Code calculations
• Function of material of construction
• Function of Maximum Allowable Workingg Pressure ((MAWP))
- Material heat flow resistance by grade of cast iron ( K )
• Higher tensile material generally has increased resistance
• Balance between required strength & heat transfer
- Value (X/K) normally around 250
Resistances to Dryer Heat Transfer
Web & Evaporating Moisture

• Ht = Contact coefficient
- Sheet to Shell contact area and pressure
- Shell Cleanliness
- Felting Wrap Angle Arrangement
- Relative ability for paper fiber to give up moisture
- Ability
y of moisture to be evaporated
p
- Pocket Ventilation & Absolute Humidity of Air
Dryer Heat Flow Calculation

1
“U” = 1 1 1
Hc Hd Ht

“U” = total heat flow from the dryer surface over time
at given operating temperatures.

Units: kg-cal/(hr-sq m-°C) or BTU /( hr-sq Ft-°F )

Total Heat Flow Sample Calculation
Note: Smallest Coefficient has Largest affect
(Hc = 400) (Hd = 250) (Hs = 100)
1
“U” = 1 1 1
400 250 100
1
“U” = .0025 .0040 .0100
“U” = 1/.0165
“U” = 60.6
Calculation Applied to Dryer Section

• Individual dryer(s) have unique effect on product.

- Warm-up section
W ti h has very lilimited
it d evaporation
ti
- Serpentine felted dryer can reduce web temperature
- Un-felted dryer has limited contact pressure
- High pocket humidity limits increased evaporation

• Early Dryers – High heat transfer with low evaporation

• Constant Drying Zone – Heat transfer mimics evaporation
• Falling Rate Zone – Temperature increases w/ limited evaporation
Section Configuration Variables
Maximizing Drying Efficiency or $/ton

• Section Config
Configuration
ration
- Two Tier
- Single Tier
- St k S
Stack Sections
ti
• Operational Issues
- Speed vs. Productivity
- Quantity vs. Quality
• Experience Levels
- Rethinking the “Way Its Always Been Done”
• Exposure to above Variables
Two Tier Double Felted Dryer Section
Maximizes Drying Capacity per MD Length

Typical arrangement regardless of grade

Limited High Speed efficiency
Single Tier Single Felted Dryer Section
Maximizes Operating Uptime Efficiency

Arrangement applied based on grade

All top felted or alternating top and bottom
High Speed efficiency w/ high drying rates
Stack Dryer Concept w/ Single Felts
Maximizes Operator’s Vertical Movement Requirement
Conventional Double Felted Two Tier Drying

Felt Pressure
Sheet Contact

Unrestrained

¾ Support Standard
¾ Dryer Contact Typical
¾ Closed Pocket
Drying Capacity vs. Fabric Tension
104

102

100
ying Capaciity (%)

98

96

94
Dry

92

90

88

86
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Dryer Fabric T ension (pli)
 Four Phase Drying Cycle per Cylinder
Phase I & III on Can Uncovered ((A-B & C-D))
Phase II on Can Covered (B-C)
Phase IV Open Draw (D-E)
D

PHASE II

ength
per Unit Le
B C
PHASE I PHASE III
A
D
C D
E

Dryying Rate p
E PHASE IV B
A E
C

B
Dryer

Paper Path Length

¾ Typical Drying Configuration

 Sample Calculated Drying Profiles
46#
# @ 40%
% Press S
Solids Ev 4.77 S
Sheet C
Contact C
Coefficient
ff Hs 98

350 0.6

300 0.5
emperature (Deg F))

250 0.4

Sheet Moisture
200 0.3

S
Te

150 0.2

100 0.1

50 1st Section ((5)) 2nd Section ((5)) 3rd Section ((11)) 4th Section ((11)) 5th Section ((8)) 6th Section ((10))
0
Dryer Location
Sheet Temperature Shell Temperature Steam Temperature Dryer Sheet Moisture
Single Felted Two Tier Dryer Section
- Unirun
Unir n or Serpentine

Felt Pressure
Dryer Contact

Unrestrained
¾ Increased Support Sheet Cooling
¾ Reduced Dryer Contact Non-Contacting Dryer
¾ Increased Sheet Cooling
Single Tier Dryer Section

Felt Pressure
D
Dryer C
Contact
t t

Vacuum Pressure
Moisture Evaporation
¾ Increased
I dSSupportt
¾ Similar Dryer Contact
¾ Reduced Sheet Cooling
Top Felted Section w/ AirCap Drying System

¾ Dryer Cylinder Heat Transfer

¾ Through Felt Air Drying
¾ No-Draw Operating Efficiency
 Speed or Production Loss Due to Over-drying
Increased Final Moistures = Lower Product Cost

10
efore Size/Reel Moiisture - %

2
Be

0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36
Machine Speed-Production
Speed Production Loss - Percent
High Drying Efficiency Key Points

• Supply and control good quality steam with minimal super-heat

• D
Dryer B
Bars iin allll cylinders
li d ffullll width
idth off available
il bl surface
f
• Minimize ineffective or isolated dryer positions
• Maintain clean dryer shell OD surface conditions
• Maximize fabric wrap angles and contact pressure
• Provide adequate dry air to convey evaporated moisture away
• Recover and/or limit heat exhausted to atmosphere
• Optimize moisture profile aspects of all machine sections
• Eliminate over drying of product beyond sellable levels
 Thank You
Yo –
For Your Time & Attention

Tom Grunder
T G d
Technical Manager - Drying

Office: (815) 389 – 6150

Cell: (608) 322 - 4884
[email protected]