Did you know that the concept of using superheated steam in drying was originally proposed over 100 years ago?? Even though it provides many benefits, using dryers with steam hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves.

In short, you have to heat the steam to a higher temperature than its vaporization point to generate superheated steam. In this state, the steam is “dry”. Dry steam wants to be wet; therefore, it will extract the moisture from the wet product in the dryer. The superheated steam acts as a heat source and as a drying medium to remove the evaporated water from the product, producing excess steam. When the product is separated from the steam, the steam will be recirculated in the dryer, reheated to remain superheated, and the process repeats.

Our Pressurized Superheated steam dryer (ExergyPSSD®) was invented at Chalmers University in Gothenburg in the late 1970s by Claes Münter, founder of the company, and is a closed, pressurized system dryer using superheated steam as the drying media.

Many industries fear the high temperature the wet product is exposed to with superheated steam but forget that the drying time in our ExergyPSSD® is significantly shorter than in a traditional hot-air dryer. The total drying time in our steam dryer is between 5- 10 seconds, but it still provides a uniform dryness of up to 99.9% of dry solids.

Instead of using hot air in the dryer, which often results in non-uniform dryness, poor product quality with nutrient degradation, and product oxidation, the ExergyPSSD® can enhance the quality of the product. In DDGS drying, for example, the Exergy pressurized Superheated steam dryer will increase the by-pass protein value by creating protected protein, increasing gelatinization of starch, improving taste, and making the DDGS 100% sterilized. All the above leads to improved milk production and weight gain in livestock, as well as healthier animals and reduced VOCs like methane gas and ammonia. This is just one of many applications where our dryer is applicable. Biomass, pulp and paper, ethanol and sludge are some industries where steam drying provides benefits that traditional dryers don’t.

In many processes, drying is a highly energy-demanding and costly stage. But our steam dryer, in comparison to other traditional dryers on the market, has the lowest net energy consumption, and the excess steam produced from the drying process can be recovered and recycled as an energy, heating, or evaporating source used in other processes, for example. Other benefits of the ExergyPSSD® are:

  • No Fire or Explosion risk due to the oxygen-free environment within the dryer
  • No emissions to the atmosphere due to a closed-loop design, making it environmentally friendly.
  • Small footprint, built on height
  • Easy Maintenance and high availability due to few rotating parts
  • Easy integration with other processes for energy optimization

Don’t sleep on steam; seize new opportunities with an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly dehydration solution.

Choose a solution that will reduce your carbon footprint, water usage, energy waste, and production cost, all while you increase production safety and reliability and maximize profits.

 

 

 

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