Patent Application
20070234589
The invention may be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which, like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:
The present invention includes an air compressor or air compression with a velocity apparatus.
The pressurized line 108 may be varied in length to be very short or very long and the internal pressure of the pressurized line 108 is maintained throughout the pressurized line 108 by a nozzle 110. The pressure is then reduced by the nozzle 110 to atmospheric pressure or near atmospheric pressure so that the feed material can be removed from the line 108. An exhaust line 109 is connected to chamber 106 to carry the feed material to the separation device 112 which separates dried powder from the airstream.
A chamber 106 or a plurality of chambers can be used along the pressurized line 108 to increase the residence time in the pressurized line in 108. These chambers and 106 may be referred to as reactors, chambers or compartments. The system 100 of the present invention may utilize high-pressure. The present invention may include a drying device, a dehydrated device, a grinding device, a killing or reducing pathogens, particle reduction piping device, or other suitable devices may be used with or instead of the reactor 106. These same devices may be used in conjunction with the feed inlet device or system line 104.
As an example, a 90% moisture feed material can be input into the feed line inlet 104 at a relatively high rate of feed, and in short amount of time which may be measured in seconds, a dry powder can be removed from the nozzle 110 separated from either hot steam and or water vapor.
The present invention is a drying system which can be configured to be a dehydrated system.
The variables of the present invention can be dynamically changed to produce different end results. For example, the moisture content of the end product can be lowered or increased depending on the needs of the user. The line pressure of the line 108 can be adjusted to be either higher or lower. A higher line pressure results in a dryer product, and conversely, a lower line pressure results in a product with more moisture.
The temperature of the pressurized line 108 can be varied to a higher temperature resulting in a dryer product, and the temperature of the pressurized line 108 can be varied to a lower temperature resulting in a product with higher moisture content.
The residence time which is the elapsed time that the feed material remains within the line 108 can be varied with a longer residence time resulting in a product which is dryer and a shorter residence time resulting in a product which is moister.
The line pressure of the line 108 can be varied in accordance with the operation of the air compressor 102. The air compressor 102 can provide a line pressure between 10 psi or as high as 50,000 psi.
The line temperature can be varied by modifying the air compressor 102 by modifying the horsepower and size of the air compressor 102 between 50 cfm and 50,000 cfm.
The temperature of the line 108 can be varied by adding either hot or cold air or various gas mixtures to the line at various predetermined positions along the length of the line the 108. The temperature can be varied by using employing devices to heat or cool air or gas in line 108. Chemical reactions can also be employed to heat or cool air or gas in line 108.
The residence time which is the time the feed material remains within the pressurized line 108, and the residence time can be increased or decreased by changing several variables. The length of the pressurized line 108 can be increased to increase the residence time, decreasing the length of the pressurized line 108 decreases the residence time. The diameter of the pressurized line 108 can be increased to increase the residence time, decreasing the diameter of the pressurized line 108 decreases the resident time. A longer residence time results in the feed material becoming dryer, and a shorter residence time results in the feed material becoming moister.
The cfm can be varied for a higher pressure which provides smaller particles. The higher pressure creates a larger explosion out of the nozzle 110 and provide for smaller particles. Correspondingly, a lower pressure provides for larger particles and a lower explosion. The higher pressure increases the capability for additional heat for example in terms of BTUs to be absorbed based upon the cfm which lowers the totals operating costs because of better efficiency.
The present invention utilizes a reactor or chamber 106 in order to increase the residence time. The present invention may shorten the residence time by eliminating the reactor or chamber 106 or by shunting the pressurized line 108 around the reactor 106.
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed.
The present invention claims priority under 35 USC section 119 based upon provisional application filed on Apr. 5, 2006 with Ser. No. 60/744,340.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60744340 | Apr 2006 | US |
