moisture is stripped from the air by a desiccant bed. The dried process air is then re-heated and delivered back into the drying hopper to dry material again.

This system is a "closed loop", because ambient (outside) air is never introduced into the process air. The closed loop system is used by the manufacturer because the process air is typically much drier than ambient air, even after carrying moisture out of the plastic resin. Recycling process air maintains drying efficiency at a consistently high level.

The Process/Regeneration Cycle

There are two desiccant beds in a dryer up to 1500 cfm. Larger dryers have two beds each for right and left beds. While one desiccant bed is on-line in the process air loop, the other is off-line being regenerated (see Figure 1).

When a desiccant bed is on-line, it absorbs moisture from the process air. The desiccant will become saturated with moisture and need to be regenerated. The dryer automatically redirects the process airflow to the second bed and starts regenerating the first bed.

During regeneration, air is heated to approximately 550°F and forced through the saturated desiccant. The moisture driven off the desiccant is bled to the atmosphere. The regeneration heater is then turned off while the regeneration blower continues to blow air through the desiccant bed until it is cooled.

Figure 1: Regeneration Cycle

AD600-AD1500

Dryer Flow Schematic

Right Desiccant in

Regeneration

Dryer Valve

Regeneration

Blower

Regeneration

Filter Insulated

Drying

Hopper

Regeneration

Heaters

Regeneration

Exhaust

Process

Heater

Process

Filter

Left Desiccant

Right Desiccant

Process

Blower

Large Dehumidifying Dryers

Functional Description

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Image 13
Sterling SDA 1000-5100 specifications Process/Regeneration Cycle