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9 Drum Dryers

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 Drum Dryers
9 Wan Ramli Wan Daud

CONTENTS

9.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 203

9.2 Types of Drum Dryers........................................................................................................................... 204
9.2.1 Atmospheric Double Drum Dryer.............................................................................................. 204
9.2.2 Atmospheric Single Drum Dryers .............................................................................................. 204
9.2.3 Atmospheric Twin Drum Dryers................................................................................................ 205
9.2.4 Enclosed Drum Dryers ............................................................................................................... 205
9.2.5 Vacuum Double Drum Dryer..................................................................................................... 205
9.3 Principles of Operation of the Drum Dryer........................................................................................... 205
9.3.1 Drum Dryer Capacity................................................................................................................. 206
9.3.2 Steam Consumption ................................................................................................................... 206
9.3.3 Feeding and Spreading of Liquid into a Thin Sheet .................................................................. 207
9.3.3.1 Nip Feeding.................................................................................................................. 207
9.3.3.2 Roller Feeding .............................................................................................................. 208
9.3.3.3 Dip Feeding.................................................................................................................. 208
9.3.3.4 Spray and Splash Feeding ............................................................................................ 208
9.3.4 Conductive or Contact Drying of Thin Sheets ........................................................................... 208
9.3.4.1 Initial Application Zone ............................................................................................... 208
9.3.4.2 Initial Sheet Zone ......................................................................................................... 210
9.3.4.3 Slow Drying Zone ........................................................................................................ 210
9.3.4.4 Vacuum Drying ............................................................................................................ 210
9.4 Dry Product Handling ........................................................................................................................... 210
9.5 Control of Drum Dryers........................................................................................................................ 210
9.6 Drum-Dried Products ............................................................................................................................ 211
Nomenclature ................................................................................................................................................. 211
References ...................................................................................................................................................... 211

9.1 INTRODUCTION cylinders in double drum dryers. The adhering thin

sheet of paste is then rapidly dried conductively by the
The drum dryer is commonly used to dry viscous, high heat flux of the condensing steam inside the
concentrated solutions, slurries or pastes on rotating drum. For very wet slurries that produce wet sheets,
steam-heated drums.1,2 It can also be used to dry the drying of the wet thin sheet can be further en-
concentrated solutions or slurries that become more hanced by blowing hot dry air on the sheet surface.
viscous or pasty because of flashing or boiling off of The thin sheet containing heat-sensitive materials,
moisture or of irreversible thermochemical trans- such as vitamins, can also be dried at a lower tem-
formations of their content that occur on their first perature in a vacuum.
contact with the hot drum surface.3–5 The irreversible thermochemical transformations
The viscous slurry or paste is mechanically spread during the slurry’s first contact with the hot drum can
by the spreading action of two counter-rotating also be used to simultaneously impart certain re-
drums into a thin sheet that adheres on the hotter quired quality of the dried product.6 Starch slurries
drum in single drum dryers or split sheets on both hot can be gelatinized or ‘‘cooked’’ before the sheet is

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

 Feed
Doctor’s Doctor’s
blade blade

Drum
Drum

Screw Screw
conveyor conveyor

FIGURE 9.1 Double drum dryer with nip feed.

dried to produce pregelatinized or ‘‘precooked’’ starch according to the number and configuration of the
for instant food formulations. Exposure of the thin steam-heated drums and the pressure of the atmos-
sheet to the high heat flux and high temperature for a phere around the drying sheet.
short period of time can also impart a porous struc-
ture to the dried sheet because of the rapid formation 9.2.1 ATMOSPHERIC DOUBLE DRUM DRYER
of vapor bubbles within the sheet during ‘‘boiling-
like’’ drying. Porous products are excellent in instant This type of dryer has a higher production rate, can
food formulations because they are more readily wet- handle a wider range of products, and is more effi-
ted and can be easily rehydrated. It is for these cient.1–3,7 The slurry or paste is fed through a pendu-
reasons that the drum dryer is widely used around lum nozzle or through a header with multiple nozzles
the world in the production of pregelatinized starch on to the nip of two steam-heated drums counter-
for instant food formulations. rotating toward each other, forming a boiling pool
at the nip (Figure 9.1). The feed can also be fed at
9.2 TYPES OF DRUM DRYERS the nips of applicator rollers and the drums (Fig-
ure 9.2). Starch slurries gelatinize in the boiling
The drum dryer was first patented for use in the pool forming pastes that become more viscous. The
manufacture of pregelatinized starch in Germany by counter-rotation of the drums spread the slurry
Mahler and Supf in 1921. Since then a host of other or paste into two thin sheets on both drums that
patents have appeared especially in the United States consequently dry conductively.
where extensive variations of feeding methods, num-
ber and configuration of drums, heating system and 9.2.2 ATMOSPHERIC SINGLE DRUM DRYERS
product removal were considered. The diameter of
the drum varies from 0.45 to 1.5 m and its length The slurry or paste is fed through a pendulum nozzle
varies from 1 to 3 m. The thickness of the drum wall or through a header with multiple nozzles similar to
is between 2 and 4 cm. The drum dryer is classified those of the double drum dryers, on to the nip of a

Feed Feed
Applicator
Applicator
rollers
rollers
Doctor’s Doctor’s
blade blade

Drum Drum

Screw Screw
conveyor conveyor

FIGURE 9.2 Twin drum dryer with applicator roller feeds.

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

steam-heated drum and a much cooler applicator
roller counter rotating toward each other, forming a
boiling pool at the nip (Figure 9.3).1–3,7 Starch slurries
gelatinize in the boiling pool, forming pastes that
become more viscous. The counter-rotation of the Drum
drum and applicator roller spread the slurry or paste
into a thin sheet on the hot drum that consequently
dries conductively. Alternatively, the slurry can be Dip Screw
fed by dip coating a dip or applicator roller in a feed applicator conveyor
tray at the bottom of the dryer and then roller-coated roller
on the drum (Figure 9.4). The slurry can also be Doctor’s
blade
fed by dip coating the drum directly in the feed
tray (Figure 9.5) or sprayed or splashed from a Feed tray
feed tray (Figure 9.6).
FIGURE 9.4 Single drum dryer with dip roller feed.

9.2.3 ATMOSPHERIC TWIN DRUM DRYERS

9.2.5 VACUUM DOUBLE DRUM DRYER
The slurry is applied by direct dip coating of the twin
drums in the feed tray at the bottom of the dryer Heat-sensitive materials can be dried in a vacuum
(Figure 9.7) or by splash or spray feeders from a double drum dryer where the dryer is enclosed in an
feed reservoir at the bottom of the dryer (Figure 9.8) airtight enclosure under vacuum (Figure 9.9).1–3,7
on to the surface of the two steam-heated drums that This type of dryer is also fitted with a condenser, a
are counter-rotating away from each other.1–3,7 The scrubber, and a vacuum pump. The operation of the
sheet is formed by adhesion on to the drum surface dryer is similar to its atmospheric version except that
and is held up against gravity by its surface tension. there are two product troughs, namely one for breaking
The sheets consequently dry conductively. This type the vacuum and the other for product discharge.
of dryer is suitable for solutions that produce a
dusty product.
9.3 PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION
OF THE DRUM DRYER
9.2.4 ENCLOSED DRUM DRYERS
The drum dryer is a highly flexible equipment because
If solvent vapor other than water released during its operational variables like the steam pressure, the
drum drying needs to be recovered or if the dried drum rotational speed, the nip width, and the ratio
products generate a lot of dust, atmospheric double- of drum rotational speeds can be regulated independ-
or twin-drum dryers can be enclosed in vapor or dust- ently. The steam pressure ranges from 2 to 7 bar, the
tight enclosures.1–3,7 The vapor can be recovered drum rotational speed varies from 2 to 30 rpm, the
by using a suitable condenser and the dust can be nip width ranges from 0.05 to 0.5 mm, and the ratio
removed by using a wet scrubber.

Feed
Applicator
Doctor’s
rollers Drum
blade

Screw
Drum conveyor

Doctor’s
Feed tray blade
Screw
conveyor

FIGURE 9.3 Single drum dryer with applicator roller feed. FIGURE 9.5 Single drum dryer with dip feed.

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

 Drum Drum
Doctor’s Doctor’s
blade blade

Screw Screw
conveyor Feed tray conveyor

FIGURE 9.6 Twin drum dryer with dip feed.

of drum rotational speeds is from unity to 5. The feed and the wide variety of drying characteristics of sheets
can be preconcentrated and preheated to reduce the of different material make the operation of the drum
drying load but there is a limit to the feed concentra- dryer very complex. In the past, the performance of a
tion beyond which the sheet may not form well.1,2,8 drum dryer drying a specific product cannot be ad-
equately predicted by theoretical or semitheoretical
9.3.1 DRUM DRYER CAPACITY models but must be based on drying performance
test of the product on a pilot plant drum dryer.
The capacity of the drum dryer depends on the drying
rate of the thin sheet, the amount of product in the 9.3.2 STEAM CONSUMPTION
sheet, and hence the sheet thickness and the rotation
speed of the drums. The drying rate in turn depends Typical specific steam consumption of the drum dryer
on the sheet temperature and hence the steam pres- varies from 1.3 to 1.5 kg steam per kg water removed or
sure in the drum, the sheet material, and to a lesser a steam economy of 0.66 to 0.76 kg water removed per
extent the thickness of the sheet. The thickness of kg steam.1–4 It means that the specific heat consumption
the sheet depends on the relative speeds of rotation is typically about 3000 to 3500 kJ/kg water removed.
of the drums, the depth of the boiling pool at the The specific evaporation rate is 10 to 30 kg water
nip, the nip width, and the rheological properties of evaporated per m2/h for difficult to dry materials
the liquid. and 40 to 50 kg water evaporated per m2/h for easy
However, the wide range of material property to dry materials. Recent studies have increased the
values of the different feed materials, the different understanding of the processes in the drum dryer but
complex thermochemical processes occurring during it is still a long way before the drum dryer can be
drying that may change these property values further, modeled completely.

Drum Drum
Doctor’s
Doctor’s
blade
blade
Splasher or
sprayer

Screw Screw
conveyor conveyor
Feed tray
FIGURE 9.7 Twin drum dryer with splasher or sprayer feed.

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

 single drum dryer. In the double drum dryer the
spreadsheet is split into two sheets that adhere on to
both hot drums. Theoretical and empirical studies on
the spreading phenomenon show that for a given
Drum rotational speed ratio of the drums, the spreadsheet
thickness reaches an asymptotic level for a critical
height of the boiling pool.9,10 Although the asymp-
totic thickness is proportional to the nip width, it also
Sprayer or Screw decreases with increasing rotational speed ratio, and
splasher conveyor to a lesser extent with increasing diameter ratio of the
Doctor’s smaller to the larger drum and the ratio of the nip
blade
width and the smaller drum. This means that in prac-
Feed tray tice, the nip can be flooded with the feed beyond
the critical height and the sheet thickness is controlled
FIGURE 9.8 Single drum dryer with splasher or sprayer feed. by simply varying the nip width.5 For single drum
dryers, the asymptotic thickness of the liquid sheet
9.3.3 FEEDING AND SPREADING OF LIQUID is about 1.2 times the nip width for Newtonian
liquids and up to 1.26 times the nip for shear-thinning
INTO A THIN SHEET
liquids. For double drum dryers, both the speed and
9.3.3.1 Nip Feeding diameter ratios are usually unity and the ratio of the
nip width to the drum is very small. The liquid sheet is
Double and single drum dryers are usually fed at the then split into two sheets of equal thickness, one for
nip between the drums by either a pendulum nozzle or each drum.
multiple nozzles in a header (Figure 9.1 through Fig- The gelatinization of starch slurries into a shear-
ure 9.3).1–3,7 The sudden exposure of the liquid pool thinning power law paste also changes the spreading
to the high temperature and intense heat flux causes the and the mixing regime in the pool.11 The sheet is
pool to boil and may also cause irreversible thermo- thinner for more shear-thinning liquid (n < 1.0). The
chemical transformations of the liquid content that paste material near the surface of the rotating drums
may also change the rheological property of the liquid experiences a higher shear rate than those further
pool. For example, the gelatinization of starch in the away in the bulk of the pool. The paste nearer the
boiling pool of starch slurry changes the Newtonian surface is therefore less viscous and readily rotates with
slurry into a non-Newtonian, shear-thinning power law the drum. On the other hand, the bulk of the paste is
paste. It also swells up several times its original vol- more viscous and may not move at all. This means that
ume. In this case, the boiling pool is transformed into a the mean residence time of the paste pool is longer
rotating, asymmetric cylinder of paste at the nip. than a corresponding Newtonian liquid pool. Heat-
The counter-rotation of the drums toward each sensitive materials therefore degrade to a larger extent
other draws the liquid pool into the nip and spreads it in the paste pool. Empirical studies have shown that
into a thin sheet that adheres to the hot drum in a the residence time distribution of the shear-thinning

Applicator
rollers
Vacuum
Feed Feed enclosure
Applicator
Doctor’s rollers Doctor’s
blade blade

Screw Drum Drum Screw

conveyor conveyor

FIGURE 9.9 Vacuum double drum dryer.

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

paste can be modeled by the Chollete and Coultier well especially if the liquid contains excessive surfact-
model consisting of an equivalent stirred tank and a ants.15,16 This rarely occurs in drum dryer operation
parallel bypass with a dead region connected to the because both the rotation speed and the ratio of
former.12–14 Hence for heat-sensitive materials, the rotation speeds are low (linear speed of drum surface
mean residence time can be reduced by having a smal- rarely exceeds 0.3 m/s).
ler pool at the expense of losing control of the sheet
thickness if the pool height is below the critical height 9.3.3.3 Dip Feeding
for asymptotic sheet thickness. Alternatively the heat-
sensitive material can be fed using roller feeding that Single and double drum dryers can also be dip-coated
does not have a large volume of liquid holdup at high directly from a reservoir of liquid (Figure 9.5 and
temperature as in nip feeding. Figure 9.6).1–3,7 Dip coating depends on the surface
tension, viscosity, density, and wall adhesion of the
9.3.3.2 Roller Feeding liquid as well as on the angle of immersion and rota-
tion speed of the drum.15,17,18 If the drum is immersed
Single drum dryers are often fed by a cooler appli- deeper in the bath and the angle of immersion is
cator roller.1–3,7 The liquid can be fed from the top therefore larger, the sheet would be thinner. Apart
at the nip between an applicator roller and the hot from Re and the Ca, dip coating also depends to a
drum and the liquid sheet is formed by spreading lesser extent on the Froude number (the ratio of
(Figure 9.3). The process is similar to nip feeding momentum to gravity forces). Higher Re (>1.0) and
(see Section 9.3.3.1). The liquid sheet can be further higher rotation speed yield thinner sheets (>0.5 m/s).
spread by a succession of rollers to ensure that the Above a certain critical Re (>1), ca (>0.2), and drum
thickness of the sheet is uniform. rotational speed (linear speed >0.5 m/s), the sheet
Alternatively the applicator roller can be dip- breaks up into rivulets or ribs.15,17,18 A smaller ca or
coated with a liquid sheet from a dipping reservoir a larger surface tension would extend the critical Re
or bath below the drum (Figure 9.4).1–3,7 The roller and rotation speed. This rarely happens in drum
then transfers some of the liquid to the counter- dryer operation because both the rotation speed and
rotating drum above it, retaining a thinner sheet the ratio of rotation speeds are low. The linear speed
that goes back into the bath. This feeding method is of the drum surface rarely exceeds 0.3 m/s.
called roller feeding and is similar to roller coating.15
The splitting of the liquid sheet is dependent on the 9.3.3.4 Spray and Splash Feeding
ratio of rotational speeds (ND/NR), the ratio of the
drum and roller diameters (DD/DR), and the index of The slurry or solution can be fed by spraying or
the power law fluid, n, given by15 splashing of the liquid from a feed tray at the bottom
of the drum (Figure 9.7 and Figure 9.8). Spraying and
 2n=(1þ2n) splashing is a highly inefficient coating technique be-
TD ND DD
¼ (9:1) cause most of the spray or splash droplets will bounce
TR NR DR
back into the feeding tray. In the drum dryer, it would
The thickness of the liquid sheet on the drum is also drools back into the tray due to gravity. The
independent of the pressure applied between the ap- spray efficiency can be as low as 20 to 30%, which
plicator roller and the drum. It depends largely on the means that 70 to 80% of sprayed or splashed liquid
viscosity and the surface tension of the liquid as well fall back to the feed tray. An adhesive liquid or a
as on the ratio of rotational speeds of the drum and liquid that becomes adhesive on contact with the hot
roller and the nip width. A stable thickness can be drum surface may have a higher spraying efficiency.
achieved for medium viscosity shear-thinning liquids The liquid sheet produced is also thinner than those
at moderate Reynolds number, Re (the ratio between produced by other comparable spreading techniques.
momentum and viscous forces), low capillary num-
ber, Ca (the ratio of the viscous force and surface 9.3.4 CONDUCTIVE OR CONTACT DRYING
tension), and low rotational speed ratio.15,16 A smal-
OF THIN SHEETS
ler Ca (<0.01) or a larger surface tension extends
coating stability to higher rotation speeds. A stable 9.3.4.1 Initial Application Zone
sheet is established between a minimum and a max-
imum drum speed and at a critical ratio of rotational The sudden exposure of the liquid feed to the high
speeds of the applicator roller and the drum. The temperature and intense heat flux on the drum surface
sheet formed beyond the critical point is unstable, at the application zone causes it to immediately heat
leading to ribbing and may entrain air bubbles as up and boil (Figure 9.10). Most of the free moisture is

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

 Steam temperature
140
Boiling at Drum surface temperature
130 application

Temparature (°C)
zone
120

110 Product sheet

temperature
Boiling
100
at Initial
90 Sheet
Zone Slow drying
80 zone New
Doctor’s blade application

1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0

Angular position (rad)

FIGURE 9.10 Temperature profile of the drum dryer.

 1=4
evaporated during this initial boiling of the feed (Fig- gr1 (r1  rs )DHv l31
ure 9.11).5,19 The boiling removes a large amount hs ¼ 0:555 (9:3)
m1 Di (Ts  Ti )
of heat from the hot drum surface due to the large
latent heat of vaporization of moisture. Since the where m1 is the viscosity of liquid (Ns/m2), Di is the
temperature difference between the feed slurry and inner diameter of drum (m), Ts is the steam tempera-
the drum is of the order of 308C, the slurry boils on ture (8C), Ti is the inner drum wall temperature
contact with the drum surface very near the critical (8C), DHv is the latent heat of vaporization of steam
point of boiling. The critical boiling flux, E in W/m2 is (J/kg), and l1 is the thermal conductivity of water
given by20 (W/m 8C). The overall heat transfer coefficient in
 0:25 this zone was reported to be between 2000 and 7000
sg(r1  rv ) W/m2 8C.6,19 The temperature of the drum surface
E ¼ 2:177rv (9:2)
r2v then drops due to the large removal of heat in the
boiling to an extent proportional to the drum rotation
where rv is the density of steam (kg/m3), r1 is the speed. The faster the rotation, the smaller is the tem-
density of water (kg/m3), s is the surface tension of perature drop. The temperature of the liquid remains
water (N/m), and g is gravitational constant (m/s2). at the boiling point of the solution, which is slightly
The correlation of heat transfer of vapor condensing above the normal boiling point of water due to the
inside horizontal tubes is given by21 presence of dissolved solids.

Boiling at
application
0.6
zone
(kg moisture /kg dry solid)

0.5
Moisture content

0.4 Boiling
at the
0.4 initial
sheet Drying curve
0.3 zone
0.2
Slow drying
0.1 New
zone Doctor’s blade
application

1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0

Angular position (rad)
FIGURE 9.11 Moisture content (dry basis) profile of the drum dryer.

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

9.3.4.2 Initial Sheet Zone vacuum drum dryer suffers less damage and retains
most of its structure and functionality than that dried
The drying regime of the thin sheet of liquid or paste in ordinary atmospheric drum dryer.30
on the drum surface is dictated by the high tempera-
ture and the large heat flux supplied by condensing
steam inside the drum (Figure 9.10).22–26 The heat 9.4 DRY PRODUCT HANDLING
flux can be as high as 85 kW/m2.27 The overall heat
transfer coefficient in this zone was reported lower The dry sheet is then scrapped off by a doctor’s blade
than at the application zone and is between 600 and or knife located at about three quadrants away from
1250 W/m2 8C.6,19 the feed point. After the sheet is removed by the knife,
Moisture transport in the sheet is predominantly the temperature of the bare metal rises slightly further
driven by the large temperature gradient and the until the feed point is reached. The sheet falls into a
subsequently large pressure gradient within the sheet product trough below the knife and a screw conveyor
(Figure 9.11).5,22–24,27 Excess surface water in the wet in the trough transport the dry products away to a
sheet flashes or boils off the sheet and the temperat- milling process where the sheet is crushed to form
ures of the drum surface continue to fall whereas the a powder product.
product sheet temperature remains constant.19 The
evaporation flux at this point is given by3
9.5 CONTROL OF DRUM DRYERS
E1 ¼ 8:64554  108 u0:8
a (Pp  Pa ) (9:4) The control strategy of the drum dryer in the past has
always been the basic control for steady operation
where ua is the velocity of air over the surface of sheet only without any on-line quality control. The set
(m/s), Pp is the vapor pressure at product surface (Pa), points for the control variables are developed by
and Pa is the vapor pressure at ambient temperature trial and error for each product. The temperature of
(Pa). As soon as the surface moisture dries up, vapor the drum can be controlled independently for the
bubbles generated by boiling within the sheet then required drying task by setting the steam pressure.
flash through the sheet. In gelatinized starch sheets, In vacuum drum dryers, the pressure of the enclosure
this drying regime tends to form pores within the and thus the temperature of drying can also be con-
sheet and craters at the surface.8,28 trolled by setting the vacuum pressure. In most cases,
the sheet thickness is controlled by setting the nip
9.3.4.3 Slow Drying Zone width and the feed flow rate for asymptotic sheet
thickness. The final moisture content is then con-
The sheet becomes quite dry very quickly and the trolled by varying the drum speed. In cases where
temperature of the drum surface as well as that of the sugar content is high enough for the final sheet
the sheet start to rise since the thermal capacitance to be in a glassy state and sticky, the final temperature
of the drum wall is larger than that of the thin sheet and drying rate of the sheet just before the doctor’s
and there is little moisture left to lower the tempera- blade is controlled by blowing cool dry air.
ture further by boiling. Tang et al.7 suggests that at This strategy is adopted because of the sheer com-
this point, the evaporation rate can be estimated by plexity of the process and the unavailability in the
past of suitable sensors for on-line quality moisture
E1 ¼ 3:6  103 h(To  Te )=DHv (9:5) content measurement. The quality of the product
such as final moisture content, thickness, porosity,
where h is a coefficient having a value of between 200 wetting, and rehydration capability (for pregelati-
and 2000 W/m2 8C, depending on the product and nized starch) as well as the right crystal structure
its thickness, To is the temperature of outer drum (the right therapeutic form for pharmaceuticals) are
surface in 8C, and Te is the temperature of evaporating complex functions of drum speed, temperature, nip
product surface in 8C. width, feed material, feed concentration, and feed-
spreading technique. In addition, the final moisture
9.3.4.4 Vacuum Drying content and thickness of the sheet may not be uni-
form across the width of the drum dryer that can
The principle of operation of the vacuum drum dry- lead to problems in shelf life and packaging of the
ing is similar to that of the atmospheric drum drying product, respectively.
process as described in the previous section except Dynamic drum dryer models that have been devel-
that both the pressure and temperature of operation oped so far can only predict the final temperature
are lower.1–3,29 A heat-sensitive material dried on a and moisture content.31–34 These models cannot

ß 2006 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

predict other important quality parameters and are n the index of power law fluid
only useful for steady process operation. With the g gravitational constant, m/s
advent of improved infrared technology, the moisture Di inner diameter of drum, m
content can be measured by inference using infrared Ts steam temperature, 8C
temperature sensors.35,36 Ti inner drum wall temperature, 8C
DHv latent heat of vaporization of steam, J/kg
ua velocity of air over the surface of sheet, m/s
9.6 DRUM-DRIED PRODUCTS Pp vapor pressure at product surface, Pa
Products that are suitable for drying on a drum dryer are Pa vapor pressure at ambient temperature, Pa
viscous liquids, slurries, suspensions, and pastes. The h heat transfer coefficient, W/m2 8C
final dry products are typically in the form of porous To temperature of outer drum surface, 8C
flakes or powders. The drum dryer has been used exten- Te temperature of evaporating product surface, 8C
sively to dry chemicals and food products. Chemicals
that have been successfully dried on a drum dryer are GREEK SYMBOLS
polyacrylamides, and various salts such as silicate,
ll thermal conductivity of water, W/m 8C
benzoate, propionate, and acetate salts.1,2 Drum dryers
rv density of steam, kg/m3
have been successfully used in drying sludge.37
rl density of water, kg/m3
The drum dryer is also extensively used to dry and
s surface tension of water, N/m
gelatinize or ‘‘cook’’ starch slurries, such as potato,38
ml viscosity of liquid, Ns/m2
rice,5,39 wheat,40–42 maize,43,44 corn,45 soybean-ba-
nana,46 and cowpea47 slurries to produce pregelatinized
starch for instant foods. Nonstarch, low-sugar foods,
such as tomato puree, milk, skim milk, whey,4 beef REFERENCES
broth, yeast,48 coffee, and malt extract, have also been 1. Moore, J.G., Drum dryers, in Handbook of Industrial
successfully dried on a drum dryer.1,2 Heat-sensitive Drying, 1st ed., Mujumdar, A.S., Ed., Marcel Dekker,
products such as pharmaceuticals30 and vitamin-con- New York, 1987, p. 227.
taining products3 can be dried in a vacuum drum dryer. 2. Moore, J.G., Drum dryers, in Handbook of Industrial
Sugar-containing slurries, such as apple puree,49 Drying, 2nd ed., Mujumdar, A.S., Ed., Marcel Dekker,
apple sauce, citrus pulps,50 and other fruit juice, have New York, 1995, p. 249.
also been successfully dried on drum dryers. However 3. Okos, M.R., Narsimhan, G., Singh, R.K., and Weit-
if the sugar content is high, some of the sugar does nauer, A.C., Food dehydration, in Handbook of Food
not crystallize properly as drying proceeds but be- Engineering, Heldman, D.R. and Lund, D.B., Eds.,
Marcel Dekker, New York, 1992, p. 437.
comes molten instead at well above the glass tran-
4. Baumann, R., Efficiency of roller dryers, Chem. Ing.
sition temperature.7 The uneven scrapping of the Technol., 25, 607, 1953.
doctor’s blade at the rubbery and glassy parts of 5. Daud, W.R.W. and Armstrong, W.D., Pilot plant study
the sheet forms wrinkles in the sheet which eventually of the drum dryer, in Drying ’87, Mujumdar, A.S., Ed.,
become ‘‘sticks’’ in the final product. The ‘‘sticks’’ Hemisphere Publishing Corporation, New York, 1987,
reduce the quality of the product by making it very p. 101.
hard to disperse and physically unsatisfactory in ap- 6. Fritze, H., Dry gelatinized starch produced on different
pearance. The formation of sticks can be controlled types of drum dryers, Die Strake, 25, 244, 1973.
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