subject: Fluid Bed Dryer And A Bed Plate Therefor [print this page] A fluid bed dryer comprises a bed plate having gas distributing openings in the plate. The gas distributing openings are arranged in pairs of substantially oppositely directed openings, and a depressed portion of the plate extends between the openings of each pair. Throughfall of products through such openings is substantially eliminated, and by suitably choosing the relationship of the effective area of the oppositely directed openings in the pairs of openings it is possible to obtain a desired relationship between the vertical fluidizing component and the horizontal transporting component of the upwardly directed gas flow through the openings of the bridge plate.
A fluid bed dryer according to claim 1, wherein said pairs of openings are arranged in groups each comprising at least one pair of openings, the openings of each group being shaped so as to provide gas flows forming a resulting gas flow having first and second components extending in the plane of the bed plate and at right angles to the plane of the bed plate, respectively.
Such fluid beds are used for drying and/or agglomerating particulate and powdered products, and they may be used as separate units, for example in connection with apparatus for spray drying milk products. The fluid bed dryer unit may then be used for further drying and/or agglomerating a moist powdered or particulate material produced in a spray dryer. The bed plate of the fluid bed, which usually has a rectangular or another elongated shape, may be vibrated so as to contributed to the fluidization of the product being processed.
A bed plate for a fluid bed dryer, said bed plate having a plurality of gas distributing openings defined therein, the openings of the bed plate being arranged in pairs of substantially oppositely directed openings, the area of one of the openings in each pair exceeding that of the other, a depressed portion of the plate extending between the openings of each pair.
