Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

Faculty of Chemical & Natural Resources Engineering

Experiment 1
DRYING OF SOLID MATERIALS USING TRAY DRYER

Name
Matric No.
Group
Program
Section
Date

Semester II - Session 2013/2014

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

EXPERIMENT 1: DRYING SOLID MATERIALS USING TRAY DRYER

OBJECTIVE
1. To determine effect of heating level on the drying rate.
2. To calculate water loss through the relationship of relative humidity and enthalpy.

INTRODUCTION
Drying is usually the final step in a series of operations, and the product from a dryer is often ready
for final packaging. Water or other liquids may be removed from solids mechanically by presses or
centrifuges or thermally by vaporization. Drying can be defined by reducing the moisture content from an
initial value to some acceptable final value. Most industrial dryers handle particulate solid during part of or
all the drying cycle, although some, of course, dry large individual pieces such as ceramic ware or sheet of
polymer. The solid to be dried may be in many different forms, such as flakes, granules, crystals, powders,
slab or continuous sheets, and may have widely differing properties. The liquid to be vaporized may be on
the surface of the solid, as in drying salt crystal; it may be entirely inside the solid, as in solvent removal
from a sheet of polymer; or it may be partly outside and partly inside.

EQUIPMENT/APPARATUS/MATERIAL

1. Tray Dryer Unit

2. Rice
3. Air velocity measurement device / anemometer
4. Analytical Balance

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES

1. Switch on power supply at electrical header, equipment panel & balance.

2. Remove drying plate from support frame.
3. Tare scale to zero.
4. Insert drying plate into support frame, and record the weight of the drying plate .
5. Spread the material (rice) to be dried on the drying plate.
6. Insert the drying plate into the support frame and record the overall weight.
7. Switch on the fan and set the controller speed.
8. Measure the airflow speed with manual anemometer.
9. Set the heating level to 2 (1000 Watt) and switch on the heater.
10. Start drying experiment, commence time measurement using stopwatch. Collect the data for 5 minutes
intervals and drying experiment is complete when either (whichever come first):

The total mass of material become constant

The collected data are constant

11. Repeat step 2 to 10 for next heating level (1 (500 Watt) - 6 (3000 Watt)).
12. Shutdown the equipment and clean the drying plate.
13. While performing the experiment, the following measured data is recorded at regular intervals and
entered in the working sheet.

Air temperature, T1 before material to be dried

Relative air humidity, F1 before material to be dried

Air temperature, T2 after material to be dried

Relative air humidity, F2 after material to be dried

Total mass, m of material to be dried and drying plates

Use the attached Mollier diagram to determine the loading X for the relevant air states

DISCUSSION

Discuss all your results. The question below only serves as a guideline. Your discussion should not
only limit to these questions.
1)

Determine the energy required for the drying purposes and compare the value for both
heating level.

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

RESULTS
Table Experimental Data 1
Initial Mass (drying plate + rice) :
Heating Level

Air Speed

Time,t

Air Temp., T1

Air Humidity, F1

Air Temp., T2

Air Humidity, F1

Mass, m

(min)

(unit)

(unit)

(unit)

(unit)

(g)

Table Experimental Data 2

Initial Mass (drying plate + rice) :
Heating Level

Air Speed

Time,t

Air Temp., T1

Air Humidity, F1

Air Temp., T2

Air Humidity, F1

Mass, m

(min)

(unit)

(unit)

(unit)

(unit)

(g)

Mass & Heat Transfer Lab

BKF3721

Psychrometric Chart and Air Characteristics

Figure 1: Psychrometric Chart