Model representation of the spray drying process of the distillery stillage filtrate based on Navier-Stokes equations

Spray drying of solutions and suspensions is among the most common methods of producing a wide range of powdered products in chemical, food and pharmaceutical industries. For the drying of heat-sensitive materials, which is fully applicable to the distillery stillage filtrate continuous-flow type of contact of drying agent and the solution droplets is examined. Two-phase simulation method of computational hydrodynamics in a stationary state for studying the process of drying of the distillery stillage filtrate in the pilot spray dryer under the following assumptions was used. The components form an ideal mixture, the properties of which are calculated directly from the properties of the components and their proportions. The droplets were presented in spherical form. The density and specific heat of the solution and the coefficient of vapors diffusion in the gas phase remained unchanged. To solve the heat exchange equations between the drying agent and the drops by the finite volume method the software package ANSYS CFX was used. The bind between the two phases was established by Navier-Stokes equations. The continuous phase (droplets of the distillery stillage filtrate) was described by the k-ε turbulence model. The results obtained showed that the interaction of "drop-wall" causes a significant change of velocity, temperature and humidity both of a drying agent and the product particles. The behavior of the particles by spraying, collision with walls and deposition of the finished product allowed to determine the dependence of physical parameters of the drying process, of the geometric dimensions of the dryer. Comparison of simulation results with experimental data showed satisfactory convergence of the results: for the temperature of the powder 10% its humidity of 12% and temperature of the spent drying agent at the outlet from the drier of 13%. The possibility of using the model in the spray dryers designing, and control of the drying process is shown.