14-09-09: Tool could enhance spray drying process

GEA Niro introduces a technique to improve the drying process of dairy and other liquid products, which can lead to product innovation and a better bottom line for food manufacturers.

According to Michael Wahlberg, manager at GEA Niro, the dynamic behind the development of this predictive spray drying tool, Drynetics, is that if you improve the method you improve the results.

Not all feeds the same
The GEA tool differs from existing spray drying process simulation techniques in that it does not assume that all feeds are essentially alike: "some feeds are sticky, some take longer to dry than others and some can form deposits on dryer walls, thus leading to impaired performance".

Conventional simulation programmes use the Rans-Marshall model for the drying kinetics, which leads to too optimistic drying times, whereas the GEA tool depicts the drying process as it really is.

Experimental approach
In the Drynetics method tests are undertaken on individual droplets of a feed to determine its actual drying properties or to detect the accumulation of deposits on dryer walls with the results then transferred to computation fluid dynamics (CFD) software to simulate the drying process with unprecedented precision.

Spray dryers are very large and expensive equipment. Using accurate stimulation in the design process improves the result, cuts costs and saves time.

Design optimisation
The predictive tool has enabled GEA Niro to optimise the design of its spray drying equipment as well as allowing it to make improvements to its existing equipment.

GEA is using the Drynetics tool to assist food processors in terms of innovation as new formulations can now be tested under realistic conditions and drying properties of different feeds can be fine tuned.

	Brochure GEA Niro Drynetics™
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