UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MARA

FAKULTI KEJURUTERAAN KIMIA

ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY LABORATORY
(CHE504)

NAME STUDENT NO
AMIRUL FAHD BIN YUSSERI 2018262268
MOHD AMIRUL BIN MD ZAIN 2018265126
MUHAMAD ARIF BIN MUHAMAD 2018262702
ZAWAYI
NOR HAMIZAH BINTI HASSAN 2018224476
KHAIRIN NISSA'' BINTI RAZMAN 2018476284

GROUP : EH2204E
EXPERIMENT : TRAY DRYER
DATE PERFORMED : 2/4/2019
SEMESTER :4
PROGRAMME / CODE : EH220
SUBMIT TO : PN NOOR HARLIZA

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 No. Title Allocated Marks (%) Marks
1 Abstract/Summary 5
2 Introduction 10
3 Aims 5
4 Theory 10
5 Apparatus 5
6 Methodology/Procedure 10
7 Results 10
8 Calculations 10
9 Discussion 20
10 Conclusion 5
11 Recommendations 5
12 Reference / Appendix 5
TOTAL MARKS 100

Remarks:

Checked by:

---------------------------

Date:

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 TABLE OF CONTENT

1.0 Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 4

2.0 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 5
3.0 Aim / Objective .................................................................................................................... 6
4.0 Theory .................................................................................................................................. 7
5.0 Procedure ........................................................................................................................... 10
6.0 Apparatus ........................................................................................................................... 11
7.0 Result ................................................................................................................................. 12
8.0 Calculations ........................................................................................................................ 15
9.0 Discussions......................................................................................................................... 16
10.0 Conclusions ...................................................................................................................... 18
11.0 Recommendations ............................................................................................................ 19
12.0 References ........................................................................................................................ 20
13.0 Appendices ....................................................................................................................... 21

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 1.0 ABSTRACT
Tray dryer is the most common used dryer in the current industry. Many industries such as
pharmaceutical and food industry use tray dryer as their drying apparatus as it consumes less
energy so it saves cost. Drying is a process of removal of water or moisture from a solid. The
main objective of the experiment is to determine the drying rate of the solid used which is
sliced potato. The experiment is also to determine the moisture content of the solid and the
impact of the air velocity on the rate of drying of the sliced potato. The sliced potato is arranged
in the tray before putting the tray in the dryer. The mass of the potato is weighted before, during
and after the experiment. The potato is weighted every 10 minutes during the experiment and
the mass is recorded. The moisture content of the potato decreased by time which also lead to
decreasing in the rate of drying of the potato. The air velocity is proven affecting the drying
rate. The objectives of the experiment are achieved thus the experiment is successfully done.

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 2.0 INTRODUCTION

Drying is a process of mass transfer which involves the removal of water or another solvent by
evaporation from a solid, semi-solid or liquid. The moisture of the solid is vaporized and is
swept away from the surface, which sometimes under vacuum. Dryers are used in many
industrial processes. There are variety of dryer types exist which can be adiabatic or non-
adiabatic. Adiabatic dryers use convection and direct contact with gases to dry solids, whereas
non-adiabatic dryers use other methods including conduction, radiation, and radio frequency
drying. Drying process is needed in current industrial activities for ensuring high-quality, long-
lasting products. The most commonly used dryers are drying racks, wicket, jet, infrared, and
ultraviolet dryers. Drying process can be a continuous process or a batch process.

Tray dryers are one type of batch dryer, which also include fluidized-bed dryers, freeze
dryers and vacuum dryers. Tray dryers use convective heat transfer to flow heated air over
solids to dry them. It is commonly used in the industry. The process begin in a typical tray
dryer. The tray firstly is filled evenly with a wet solid such as potato. The trays are then loaded
into the dryer. Blower fans are installed inside to ensure proper circulation and transfer of heat.
The blower fans power of the dryer is adjustable and the heater in the dryer allow continuous
variations in air flow rate from the fan through the drying channel. As the dryer operates, water
starts to evaporate from the solid into the air. The drying rate is then calculated by weighing
the initial solid/water mixture and subtracting the weight of the final dry solid and at various
timed intervals. Heat transfer happens in the dryer by circulation of hot air by the heaters. A
control panel to control the temperature and other parameters is fixed outside the dryer.

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 3.0 AIM/OBJECTIVE

The objectives of the experiment are:

1. To determine the drying rate and moisture content of the sample throughout the
experiment of removal of water content.

2. To study the effect of air velocity of drying process on the sample.

3. To practice how to operate the tray dryer.

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 4.0 THEORY

A tray dryer is an enclosed insulated chamber in which trays are placed on top of each
other in trolleys. Tray dryer are used where heating and drying are essential parts of
manufacturing process in industries. The material to be dried either wet or solids are placed in
the trays. Heat transfer is by circulation of hot air by electric heaters or steam in radiator coils.
Blower fans are installed inside to ensure proper circulation and transfer of heat. A control
panel to control the temperature and other parameters is fixed outside the dryer.
In tray dryer hot air is continuously circulated. Forced convection heating takes place
to remove moister from the solids placed in trays. Simultaneously the moist air is removed
partially. Wet solid is loaded in to the trays. Trays are placed in the chamber. Fresh air is
introduced through in let, which passes through the heaters and gets heated up. The hot air is
circulated by means of fans at 2 to 5 metre per second. Turbulent flow lowers the partial vapour
pressure in the atmosphere and also reduces the thickness of the air boundary layer. The water
is picked up by the air. As the water evaporates from the surface, the water diffuses from the
interior of the solids by the capillary action. These events occur in a single pass of air. The time
of contact is short and amount of water picked up in a single pass is small. Tray dryer is used
for drying of pigments, food, chemical and plastic powders.
Drying is an important industrial process. Various temperature levels and drying
principles are applied in industrial dryers. The most common dryer type is one in which air is
heated with steam, gas or hot water and then circulated over the wet product. As the air picks
up moisture from the wet product, its humidity increases and the energy contained in this
stream may make it a useful heat source. Standard procedure is to exhaust this humid air or
dehumidify it. With a heat pump, heat can be extracted from the humid air. The air is cooled
down and dehumidified. The extracted heat can be increased in temperature and can be used to
heat the dryer.
Heat transfer in the process of drying of moist materials has been calculated from the
experimental data on moisture transfer. Heat is supplied to the product for evaporation of
liquid contained, and mass is transferred as a vapour into the surrounding gas. The drying
rate is determined by the set of factors that affect heat and mass transfer. Solids drying is
generally understood to follow two distinct drying zones, known as the constant-rate period
and the falling-rate period. The two zones are demarcated by a break point called the critical
moisture content.

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 Figure 1: Graph of drying rate versus drying time and water content

Graph rate of drying versus moisture content and graph moisture content versus time
represents constant-rate period for A to B. At A to B, moisture is assuming to be evaporating
from saturated surface at a governed rate by diffusion through from the surface through the
stationary air film that is in contact with it. This section depends on the air temperature,
humidity and speed of moisture to the surface, which in turn determine the temperature of the
saturated surface. During the constant rate period, liquid must be transported to the surface at
a rate sufficient to maintain saturation.
At the end of the constant rate period which is point B is break in the drying curve
occurs. This point is called the critical moisture content, and a linear fall in the drying rate
occurs with further drying. This section which is BC, is called the first falling-rate period. As
drying proceeds, moisture reaches the surface at a decreasing rate and the mechanism that
controls its transfer will influence the rate of drying. Since the surface is no longer saturated,
it will tend to rise above the wet bulb temperature. This section, represented by CD in Figure
1 is called the second falling-rate period, and is controlled by vapour diffusion.
Liquid movement may occur by diffusion under the concentration gradient created by
the depletion of water at the surface. The gradient is caused by evaporation, or as a result of
capillary forces, or through a cycle of vaporization and condensation, or by osmotic effects.
The amount of the air stream to absorb and carry away moisture determines the drying rate
and establishes the duration of the drying cycle. The two elements essential to this process

8
are inlet air temperature and air flowrate. In conclusion, the higher the temperature of the
drying air, the greater its vapour holding capacity.

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 5.0 PROCEDURE

Start-up procedures

1) The main switch of Tray Dryer Training Unit CE – 130 is switched on.

2) The fan power is turned on and the toggle is set to the lowest speed.

3) The heating element which is the heater is then switched on and the toggle is set to level
7.

Preparation procedures

1) The drying trays are washed properly to remove any unwanted substances.

2) The mass of the drying trays is weighted by inserting into the support frame and the
data were recorded.

3) The potatoes are sliced very thinly and put on the trays one slice per once slice.

4) The tray with the potato slices on it is then weighted again by inserting into the
supporting tray and the data were recorded.

5) The initial temperature and humidity are recorded.

6) The initial air flow inside the tray dryer unit is measured by facing the anemometer at
the opening of the tray dryer unit and the data are recorded.

7) The trays are let in the unit, for every 10 minutes the data are recorded in 90 minutes
duration of drying process.

8) After 90 minutes, all the trays are taken out from the dryer unit and cleaned.

Shut-down procedures

1) The heater toggle is set to level 0 and the fan and heater are switched off.

2) The main switch of the Tray Dryer Training Unit CE – 130 is switched off.

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 6.0 APPARATUS & MATERIALS

Material

1) Potatoes

Apparatus

1) Knife

2) Tray Dryer Training Unit CE – 130

3) Anemometer

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 7.0 RESULT

Mass of tray (3 trays) = 1388.8 g

Mass of potatoes + tray = 2214.6 g

Mass of potatoes = 825.9 g

Table 1: Temperature, Humidity, Velocity and Mass Properties of Potatoes at The Respective
Time

Mass of
Temperature (◦C) Humidity (%) Velocity
Time (min) Potatoes
(m/s)
T1 T2 H1 H2 (g)
0 30.6 30.2 8.7 6.5 1.17 825.9
10 45.2 41.0 8.7 6.8 1.37 758.5
20 45.9 41.8 7.9 6.6 1.33 748.1
30 46.0 43.8 7.8 6.6 1.30 703.9
40 46.1 43.8 7.7 6.6 1.30 660.2
50 46.0 41.8 7.8 6.6 1.35 628.4
60 45.8 42.7 7.8 6.6 1.36 576.7
70 46.0 43.9 7.7 6.6 1.37 538.2
80 45.8 43.9 7.8 6.6 1.42 499.2
90 45.9 44.0 7.7 6.6 1.40 443.8
100 46.0 44.2 7.7 6.6 1.41 433.3
110 46.0 44.3 7.7 6.6 1.43 402.8
120 46.0 44.4 7.7 6.6 1.42 380.5

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Table 2: Drying Rate and Moisture Content

Mass of potatoes Moisture content Drying rate

Time (min)
(kg) (v) (min-1)
0 0.826 1.168 0.0176
10 0.759 0.9921 0.0029
20 0.748 0.9633 0.0115
30 0.704 0.8478 0.0115
40 0.660 0.7323 0.0081
50 0.629 0.6509 0.0136
60 0.577 0.5144 0.0102
70 0.538 0.4121 0.0102
80 0.499 0.3097 0.0144
90 0.444 0.1654 0.0029
100 0.433 0.1365 0.0079
110 0.403 0.0577 0.0058
120 0.381 0 0

MOISTURE CONTENT VS TIME

1.4

1.2
Moisture content

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time

Figure 2 – Graph of Moisture Content versus Time

The graph shows the moisture content of potatoes decrease when the time increase.

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 DRYING RATE VS TIME
0.02
0.018
0.016
0.014
Drying rate

0.012
0.01
0.008
0.006
0.004
0.002
0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time

Figure 3 – Graph of Drying Rate versus Time

The graph shows rapidly decrease in drying rate from 0 min to 10 min then increase
until time 20 min. From time 40 min to 80 min the drying rate is increase and decrease in
constant pattern. At time 80 min to 90 min, the graph shows rapidly drop before increase at
time 100 min and the decrease at 120 min.

DRYING RATE VS MOISTURE CONTENT

0.02
0.018
0.016
0.014
Drying Rate

0.012
0.01
0.008
0.006
0.004
0.002
0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4
Moisture content

Figure 4 – Graph of Drying Rate versus Moisture Content (Drying Curve)

The graph shows the drying rate increase when the moisture content increase from 0%
moisture up to 0.9% moisture. However, at about 0.1% moisture content until 0.2% the graph
shows rapid decrease in the drying rate.

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 8.0 CALCULATION

Provided that the total mass of wet banana and tray are 2.215kg and mass of tray is 1.389kg,

Mass balance:

Mass in = mass out

𝐈𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 (𝐊𝐠) = 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 + 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐎𝐟 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐯𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝

Mass of Water Evaporated = 0.826- 0.281

= 0.445 kg

𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐞𝐭 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐞𝐬 − 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐞𝐬 (𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥)

𝐌𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐯 =
𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐫𝐲 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐞𝐬 (𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥)

Example:

0.826−0.381
1) =
0.381
= 1.1680

0.759−0.381
2) =
0.381
= 0.9921

By recording the sample weight every 10 minutes

𝐌𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 (𝐓𝟏) − 𝐌𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 (𝐓𝟐)

𝐃𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 =
𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞

Example:

1.1680−0.9921
1) =
10
= 0.0176 kg/min

0.9921−0.9633
2) =
10
= 0.0029

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 9.0 DISCUSSIONS

A process of removing relatively small amount of water from the material is called drying.
Water will be removed as vapour by using air in the drying process. Regarding to this
experiment, the material (potato) were inserted into the drying equipment and the drying
process was continuously carried out for several periods of time which indirectly classified this
drying process as a batch. The objective of the experiment is to study the drying curve based
on the moisture content of the potato within the specific time taken. The experiment can be
theoretically assumed where the drying process of the experiment occurs by supplying the heat
into the potato samples and use the air velocity in order for the passed over heated element that
acts as a mass transfer to evaporate the moisture content within the potato.

Based on the result taken, the percentage of humidity from the experiment was recorded
in Table 1 according to the time taken to dry the potato for every 10 minutes of interval. The
humidity of air-water can be defined as kg of water vapour contained in 1kg of dry air. The
first percentage of humidity that was recorded in the first 10 minutes are 32.5 for H1 and 0.5
for H2 with the temperature of 30.6°C and 30.2°C. As we can observe from the experiment,
there is only small amount number of changes for the value of humidity from the beginning
until the end of the experiment. That means the water vapour content in the 1kg dry air does
not change. Lack of equipment efficiency is the main reason of this situation to occur. It is
necessary to make sure that the notations used are correct. H1 and T1 are the humidity and
temperature value before the tray is inserted into the dryer meanwhile H2 and T2 after the
drying process starts.

Furthermore, Table 2 shows the moisture content in the potato which are from 1.168
until 0 and the drying rate from 0.0176min¯¹ to 0. The moisture content of the potato is
decreased proportionally with time meaning to say that the moisture content of the potato will
decrease as the time increase. Initially, the mass of the potato was 0.826g, then the mass started
to reduce towards the end of the experiment. The mass of the potato was taken for every 10
minutes of interval and it can be used to calculate the moisture content in the potato. The
moisture content decreased as the time increased because the water in the potato vaporised
when air dry flowed through the potato. The difference in the surface texture of the potato
proved the difference in the moisture content.

16
 On the other hand, the drying rate and the moisture content of the potato were being
analysed for the overall result. It can be conclude that when the potato has a high moisture
content, the process of drying will take a longer period of time.

The velocity of the air inside the system will also affect the moisture content and the
drying rate. Even though the fan was constantly set at the lowest speed, there is still changes
present in the velocity. Most probably, this is due to the unwell maintained equipment causing
the surrounding air to affect the system in the dryer unit or it might be the equipment itself is
not efficient. At the end of the experiment, we can analyse that the result from the experiment
using batch dryer is acceptable.

Comparison between tray dryer and various type of batch dryer

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 10.0 CONCLUSIONS

Referring to the data and the result, the conclusion can be made is that the objective of the
experiment was achieved. A consistent result of drying process performed on the solid sample
plus the theory where the moisture content and the rate of drying decreasing as the time
increases. The fan of the drying unit is the major factor of the air velocity. Any changes in the
air velocity is because of the surrounding air or equipment error since the speed of the fan was
set at constant speed. Overall the experiment was conducted smoothly. Moreover,
troubleshooting the experiment is really important as it might cause error in the result obtained.
As a conclusion, since the objective of the experiment is obtained, the experiment can be said
successfully conducted.

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 11.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

In recommendations, the speed of the fan should be at higher speed which resulting
higher yield. In order to dry up potato faster, the temperature of the fan should be run at high
temperature which is also increases the drying rate of the potato. The higher the drying rate,
the lower the moisture content in the sample. In order to maintain the yield of the tray dryer,
maintenance should be undergo regularly in order to maintain the accurateness of the data. This
is due to the velocity of the fan is slightly change although at the constant value. Besides, tray
dryer itself should be made up from insulated material so that the tray dryer is well-insulated
to prevent heat releases to surrounding resulting to decreases the performance of tray dryer.
The air circulation in the tray dryer can be improved its performance in order to decrease the
drying time and to allow uses at low temperature.

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 12.0 REFERENCES

1. Artin Afacan, J. M. (1984). Tray Drying Of Solids.

Retrieved April 10, 2018, from University of Florida Digital Collections:
http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/AA/00/00/03/83/00083/AA00000383_00083_132.pdf
2. Choudhary, A. (n.d.). Principle and Working Of Fluidized Bed Dryer (FBD).
Retrieved April 10, 2018, from Pharmaceutical Guidelines:
https://www.pharmaguideline.com/2014/08/principle-and-working-of-fluidized-bed-
dryer-fbd.html
3. Parikh, D. (2015, April). Vacuum Drying: Basics and Application.
Retrieved April 10, 2018, from Reseacrh Gate:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283088611_Vacuum_Drying_Basics_and_
Application
4. Parikh, D. M. (2014, April 1). Solids Drying : Basic And Applications.
Retrieved April 9, 2018, from Chemical Engineering Online:
http://www.chemengonline.com/solids-drying-basics-and-
applications/?printmode=1#Figure1
5. S. M. Zakir Hossain, N. M. (2017, January). Design of a laboratory experiment for the
performance analysis of a retrofitted tray dryer unit. Education for Chemical
Engineers, Volume 18, 35 - 44.
Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1749772816300173

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 13.0 APPENDICES

Figure 5: Raw data for tray dryer result

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