PH—Postharvest Technology: Study on Sawdust Drying Techniques in Fluidised Bed

An experimental study on sawdust particle drying is carried out using fluidized-bed equipment at a laboratory scale. The techniques considered are: drying in a conventional fluidized bed, drying using heat surfaces immersed in the bed, and drying in vibrofluidized bed. An evaluation of the process is applied, and typical parameters are determined for the design of particle drying units, such as operation velocity, drying times and specific parameters of sawdust production and energy consumption. Drying in vibrofluidized bed showed important thermal and hydrodynamic advantages. A study on drying thermal behaviour using this technique is presented. It was proved that operation temperature over 100°C together with low superficial velocities, resulted in better conditions for lower energy consumption for drying kinetics.