3.

BASIS FOR EQUIPMENT SELECTION

Equipment selection is indeed essential in the plant designing stage so as to build a plant that is able
to operate economically and sustainably. This section discusses and justifies the unit operations that
have been selected for the plant.

3.1

Dryer

Drying is a unit operation that removes a certain amount water or moisture content from process
materials. For Empty Fruit Bunches (EFB), the level of moisture content is really high that it needs to
be removed in order to be processed into precursors for instance glucose before producing
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA). In general, there are two ways to this process, batch, where the
drying equipment is inserted with the material and process takes place for a certain period and
continuous, whereby material is added to the dryer and dried material is removed from the dryer, both
continuously.
Based on the PFD, wet EFB feed enters Stream 2 via the conveyor belt after washing to be
dried off. Indirect heat and direct heat rotary dryers have been selected to be compared and justified in
Table 1.
Rotary dryer has the ability to be designed for drying time range of 10 to 60 minutes. Small
particles has a retention time less than a minute whereas large particles has a retention time between
10 to 30 minutes. In case large retention time is required to remove the internal moisture content in
the falling rate period, shell diameter of a smaller size could be applied at the wet end for surface
moisture removal with low material holdup in the drum. Not only has that, at the dry end, the shell
diameter had to be increased in order to provide longer retention time and greater hold up. Pneumatic
conveyor can also be installed to carry the product out of the dryer. Particles take a flight following
the gravity and during this time, major mass and heat transfer processes take place. Generally, rotary
dryer has a thermal efficiency range of 30 60%. Efficiency of the dryer is largely dependent on the
differential temperatures between the exhaust and inlet gas, although the heat transfer rate is also
influenced

by

the

relationship

between

the

rotation

speed

and

design

of

flights

(http://www.gea.com/en/binaries/rotary_tcm11-16177.pdf). In order to have good efficiency, 10

15% of product holdup volume should be covering the flights or lifters completely. Good cascading
action is ensured through careful design of lifters which eventually assists in avoiding large clusters of
material from failing off the flights. It has a length to diameter ratio of 4 to 10. This type of dryer suits
the high production rate demands well. Inlet temperature of rotary dryer for biomass varies from

232C to 1093C while the outlet temperature has a range of 71 C to 110C.

(http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy99osti/25885.pdf, pg 7)
https://www.911metallurgist.com/blog/rotary-dryer-design-working-principle
Table 1. Comparison between Indirect Heat Rotary Dryer and Direct Heat Rotary Dryer.

Advantages

Indirect Heat Rotary Dryer

Inexpensive.
Operate continuously.
In case there is a need to increase
retention time (if materials is very
small and light in size), the cylinder
can be inclined at a higher elevation.
High drying rate.
Avoids the issue of fine materials
becoming entrained in a process gas,
which can be a problem when
processing fine materials in a direct
heat dryer (http://feeco.com/rotarydryers-indirect-vs-direct-drying/#)
Allows the operator to control the
processing plant closely by providing
an ideal characteristic when working
with materials that can be combustible
in certain settings, or, when the
material to be processed cannot come
into contact with process gases, such
as when processing food - grade
materials.
(http://feeco.com/rotarydryers-indirect-vs-direct-drying/#)
Rely on the heat emanating from the
shell of the drum to dry the material
via
conduction
and
radiation.
Subsequently, indirect dryers would
not benefit from the addition of lifting
flights, since there is no process gas
moving
through
the
drum.
Furthermore, because the furnace
exhaust is kept separate from the
process gas, indirect dryers have the
added benefit of requiring less exit gas
treatment
(http://feeco.com/rotarydryers-indirect-vs-direct-drying/).

Direct Heat Rotary Dryer

Dependent on direct contact
between the material and process
gas.
Installing additional lifting flights
to the internal walls of the dryer
would further increase the
efficiency. This flights help to lift
the material by carrying it and
cascading it through the process
gas stream so that heat transfer
between the material and drying
medium can be fully maximised.
(http://feeco.com/rotary-dryersindirect-vs-direct-drying/).
Designed for heat insensitive
material and materials that require
significantly
low
moisture
content.

Disadvantages

Working
Principles

Should the material has large amount

of fine particles due to the large
volume of gas and velocities, the
possibility of excessive entrainment
losses in the outlet gas stream would
increase.
(http://pharmapproach.com/rotarydryer/).

Material
Size Factor
Purchase Cost

Low drying rate.

Entrainment of fine materials.

Alloy
Drum Peripheral Area: 200 - 3000 ft2
$ 186, 347.1432 - $ 1, 152, 385.102

Carbon steel
Heat Transfer Area: 100 - 1400 ft2
$ 105, 158.3076 - 1, 192, 014.068

Based on the comparison, Indirect Heat Rotary Dryer is more favourable for this project due
to its ability to operate continuously at high drying rate and it suits the materials that must be dried to
a very low level of moisture content (http://www.gea.com/en/products/rotary_dryer.jsp). Not only
that, the alloy material helps in maintaining the integrity of the drum though the shell that could be
exposed to high temperature constantly. This dryer would also be able to maintain the composition of
EFB at its outlet to be channelled through Pump 1, Heater 1 and the compressor. Since the EFB
capacity at the drying feed stream is expected to be 96,899.2248 kg/hour, the following size of
indirect heat rotary dryer is chosen.
Table 2. Indirect Heat Rotary Dryer Sizing (http://www.dewomachine.com/products/dryingequipment/rotary-dryer.html?
gclid=CjwKEAjwy8bABRD5osXMovTHpmQSJACfZY0FNop_tj4ahpkPoS9DOfH0QBiQpvsjfYrs_HnD6ydMRoC3lvw_wcB).

Model (mm)

Obliquity
(%)

Revolution
Speed
(r/min)

3600x2500
0

3-5

1.5 - 6

Inlet Air
Temperature
(C)
800
(maximum)

Power
(kW)

Capacity
(tonnes/hour)

Weight
(tonnes)

155

95 160

188

To obtain the final form of PHA, based on the PFD, Vacuum Dryer is chosen. Generally, it is
more expensive than that of the atmospheric pressure, however, it suits well for materials that are
sensitive to heat or when there is a need for solvent recovery or also if there are possibilities of fire
and/or explosion to take place. This dryer typically operates as a batch unit operation. Nevertheless, it
can also operate as a continuous unit operation provided that the feed, products and parameters of
process control are taken into careful consideration. For this stage, Vacuum Dryer is being compared

with Freeze Dryer. Freeze dryer on the other hand, preserves the material through lyophilisation so
that it is easier for transportation. It works in such a way that the material is frozen to reduce the
ambient pressure in order to give space for the frozen water in the material sublimates from solid
phase to gas phase directly.

Table 3. Comparison between Vacuum Dryer and Freeze Dryer

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283088611_Vacuum_Drying_Basics_and_Applicati
on] [https://msu.edu/course/fsc/229/Notes/lecture%2025.htm]
[http://www.spscientific.com/freeze-drying-lyophilization-basics/].
Vacuum Dryer
Suitable for heat - sensitive
materials or when solvent recovery
is needed or during fire and/or
explosion happens.
Less energy is needed for drying.
High drying rate.
Less damaging drying process.
Reduces risks of contacting with
diseases or dangers to workers.
Expensive
Upper temperature limit is 600F
which is lower than the upper
temperature limit of a direct heat
dryer.
Rate at which material temperature
can be raised due to the limited
surface area for heat transfer to
take place effectively in the dryer.
Vacuum
drying
isneeded
a12
process
in
which
duced
pressure
materials
environment,
are
which
aconlowers
drying.
the
Vacuum
heat
dryers
offer
for
rapid
lowtemperature
materials
and
drying
are
suitable
ofdried
solvent
recovery
taining
solvents.
from
solid
Heat
products
is
usually
supplied
by
passing
steam
or
hot
water
Drying
2).
temperatures
can
caremajor
mateofheating
long,
wetting
usually
agent.
about
Drying
tothermolabile
48
times
h.
are
Unwhich
into
media
(usually
abein
hot
gare the
Indirect
heat
dryer
as
heat
is

Advantages

Disadvantages

Working
Principle

transferred through conduction

from the heated surface of the
dryer to the material, through a
jacketed vessel wall. Solvents or
residues of moisture evaporate.
Heat needed for rapid drying is
required at lower point as drying
takes place in low pressure
environment.
Heat is then supplied by passing
hot water through hollow shelves
or steam with the help of a rotating
agitator that allows the escape of
vapours to the surface to provide

Freeze Dryer
Reduces the usage of water.
Carries out without any heat
application.
Better retention of national and
sensory qualities.

Expensive.
Unfamiliar
with
industry.
Low capacities.
Slow drying rate.

chemical

At initial freezing stage, product

that exhibits the desired
crystalline structure is frozen
below eutectic temperature.
This can be further removed by
either steam jet ejectors or
mechanical vacuum pumps.
During sublimation, vapour
pressure
surrounding
the
product should be lower than
that of the vapour from the ice,
at a similar temperature.
Vacuum pressure is below 25
Pa. Condenser operates at
around - 40C.

Materials
Size Factor
Purchase Cost

uniform heat distribution between

the particles and heated surface.
Temperature is controllable materials at the major part of the
drying cycle, materials decide to
remain at boiling point of wetting
agent.
Drying time is in the range of 12 to
48 hours.
Vessel is kept at constant vacuum
with the vapours being removed
from the vessel and the dust
particles are separated from the
vapours in a dust filter. Saturated
vapour pressure of the solvent is
also reduced to facilitate drying at
lower temperature.
Combination of a collection vessel
and condenser can be installed for
solvent recovery purposes.
Steel
1.39m 2.78m
**perrys chemical engineer

Heater starts at 120C and drops

with time, to lower values,
approximately 40C when left
running for 8 - 10 hours.
The last drying phase aimed at
removing the final traces of
water in which affecting the
partial pressure of vapour rising
the product will be at its lowest.
Vacuum band dryer suits for
thin pastes or slurries.

Steel

Vacuum Dryer is chosen due to the fact that it has higher drying rate than that of the Freeze
Dryer on top of its safety features to the personnel in that particular area. In addition, it requires less
energy which means that the maintenance cost would be low. The drying time and the drying process
are dependent on heat conduction of the solid particles and solvents, pressure and temperature
conditions as well as the speed of the agitator. 78.2946 kg/h of lignin, 2325 kg/h of PHA and 96.7051
kg/h of water will be fed into the inlet stream of Vacuum Dryer from the Hydro - cyclone. The
following is the details of the size of the Vacuum Dryer.
Table 4. Sizing of the Vacuum Dryer [http://www.vekamaf.com/documents/54/Hosokawa%20Micron
%20drying%20technology%20brochure.pdf].

Model (water filling), l

Height, mm
Width, mm
Net volume (powder filling), l
Jacket surface area, m2
Maximum water evaporation,* kg/h
Maximum ethanol evaporation,* kg/h

500
3920
1470
430
2.84
25
60

*with jacket surface temperature, T = 50C

Table 5. Material of the Vacuum Dryer components [http://laju.com/en/vacuum_dry.php].

Supply Scope

Material

Vacuum Dryer Tower complete with sight glass,

Electric illumination
Spray Nozzle
Float Liquid Level Control
Feed Tank
Float Valve
Vacuum Pump

3.2

Mild Steel
Stainless Steel
Stainless Steel
Mild Steel
Stainless Steel
Cast Iron Casing
Cast Iron Impeller
Stainless Steel Shaft

Reactor

The reactors, in which chemicals are made in industry, vary in size from a few cm3 to
the vast structures that are often depicted in photographs of industrial plants. For example,
kilns that produce lime from limestone may be over 25 metres high and hold, at any one time,
well over 400 tonnes of materials. The design of the reactor is determined by many factors
but of particular importance are the thermodynamics and kinetics of the chemical reactions
being carried out. The two main types of reactor are termed batch and continuous.
(http://www.essentialchemicalindustry.org/processes/chemical-reactors.html)

Working Principle

Advantages

Batch
All reactants are
added
at
the
commencement and
the
product
withdrawn at the
completion of the
reaction. They are
conducted in tanks
attached
with
impellers,
gas
bubbles or pumps.
Suitable for
small scale
production
Suitable for
processes
where
a
range
of
different
products or
grades is to

CSTR
One or more fluid
reagents
are
introduced into a
tank
reactor
equipped with an
impeller while the
reactor effluent is
recovered. A stepped
up
concentration
gradient exists

PFR
One or more fluid
reagents are pumped
through a pipe or
tube. These are
characterized
by
continuous gradients
of concentration in
the direction of flow

Highly
flexible
device
By products
may
be
removed in
between the
reaction
It
is
economically

Higher
efficiency
than a CSTR
of the same
volume
PFRs
may
have several
pipes
or
tubes
in
parallel

be produced
in the same
equipment
Suitable for
reactions
requiring
long reaction
times
Suitable for
reactions
with superior
selectivity

Limitations

Application Area

Not suitable
for
large
batch sizes
It is a closed
system
in
which once
the reactants
are added in
the reactor,
they
will
come out as
products
only after the
completion
of
the
reaction

beneficial to
operate
several
CSTRs
in
series or in
parallel.
Reaction can
be
carried
out
in
horizontal as
well
as
vertical
reactors

Both
horizontal
and vertical
operations
are common
They can be
jacketed
Reagents may
be introduced
at locations
even
other
than inlet

More
Not
complex and
economical
expensive
for
small
than turbular
batches
units
All
calculations
performed
with CSTRs
assume
perfect
mixing
At
steady
state,
the
flow rate in
must equal
the flow rate
out,
otherwise the
tank
will
overflow or
go empty
(inks,
dyes, Industry
that The tubular reactor
polymers) and food involves liquid/gas is especially suited
industry
reactions
to cases needing
considerable
heat
transfer, where high
pressures and very
high or very low
temperatures occur

Sizing
Cost
http://www.eng.unideb.hu/userdir/deak.krisztian/REACTORS+AND+FUNDAMENTALS+O
F%20highlighted.pdf
http://www.uotechnology.edu.iq/dep-chem-eng/shar/third/reactior%20design/Reactor
%20Lecture%201.pdf

Compressor (http://turbolab.tamu.edu/proc/turboproc/T21/T21183-188.pdf)
It is a mechanical device that pressurises and circulates air and various gases for applications
that provide power for controls, maintain mechanical tension, enable chemical reactions,
move raw materials and supply energy through gas pipelines to homes scattered throughout
industrialized nations.
The following factors contribute to its performance:

Rotation speed
Suction pressure
Discharge pressure
Refrigerant type used

http://www.plantservices.com/articles/2014/tactics-and-practices-compressor-selection/
http://www.thecompressedairblog.com/compressor-selection-basics-positive-displacementversus-dynamic-compression/
http://www.carel.com/types-of-compressor

Working principle

Positive
Displacement Continuous
Flow
Compressor
Compressor
In positive displacement In dynamic compression, air

Pressure & flow rate

Cost
Sizing

compression, the air is

drawn into one or more
compression
chambers,
which are then closed off
from the inlet. The enclosed
volume of each chamber
decreases
through
the
displacement of one or more
moving parts and the
pressure
increases,
compressing
the
air
internally. Once the pressure
reaches
the
maximum
pressure ratio, a port or
valve opens; the continued
reduction of volume in the
compression
chamber
discharges the air into the
outlet system.
while positive displacement
compression is better suited
to variable load.
At a constant rotational
speed, the pressure/flow
curve for a dynamic
compressor
(turbocompressor)
differs
significantly
from
an
equivalent curve for a
positive
displacement
compressor.
Turbocompressors operate
with a variable flow rate and
variable
pressure
characteristics,
while
displacement compressors
operate with a constant flow
rate and variable pressure.

is drawn between the blades

on
a
rapid
rotating
compression impeller and
accelerates to high velocity.
The air or gas is then
discharged
through
a
diffuser, where the kinetic
energy is transformed into
static
pressure.
Most
dynamic compressors are
turbocompressors with an
axial or radial flow pattern
and are often designed for
large-volume flow rates.
Unlike
a
positive
displacement
compressor
which works with a constant
flow, a dynamic compressor
works at a constant pressure.
Dynamic
compression
technology is best suited for
base load requirements,

Separators: