In the February 2016 issue of Inform magazine, Solex Thermal Science looks at why the basic fundamentals governing energy recovery and heat transfer in bulk solids are a good starting point for achieving an optimal balance of performance, operational flexibility and commercial objectives.
Solex Thermal Science Inc. has been selected to provide a 50 metric ton per hour sugar cooler to Zucarmex for their Melchor Ocampo mill in Mexico. Zucarmex needed to find a solution to prevent their sugar from caking to improve the quality of their product for their customers.
Drying of bulk solids is often required for preservation of the product and as a final step before storage. It also serves as a feed stock preparation step for adjusting the moisture content of the incoming material to the desired level for downstream processing.
The importance of fertilizers to the world economy can hardly be overstated and the growth in fertilizer consumption since the 1960s has been impressive. By supplying crops with essential nutrients, fertilizers facilitate efficient use of land and water.
The concept of a bulk solid cooler for fertilizer products was introduced to the industry over 20 years ago. Since then Solex has installed more than 60 coolers of this type in fertilizer plants around the world.
The drying of grains and oilseeds is critical for downstream processing and storage as it prevents caking, agglomeration, spoilage and degradation of material.
Solex technology cools bulk solids indirectly using water. With this technology, air is not required in the cooling process and the energy requirements are minimized. The total energy consumption of the Solex heat exchanger can be 90% less than air-cooling methods.
Fluid bed technology is used for cooling, heating and drying of bulk solids materials, and takes place by passing a gas (most commonly air) through a perforated distributor plate which then flows through a layer (bed) of solids.