The 10 facts you need to know about spray drying powders
We’ve put together 10 important facts to help you understand spray dry nozzle performance, code compliance and safety. 1. Hygiene and ease of cleaning in nozzle design is often overlooked Spray dry plants are venturing into new markets that demand a higher level of hygiene. It’s increasingly difficult to meet these hygiene levels and remain competitive when cap chamber design in traditional spray nozzles requires so much of your time for cleaning and maintenance. A [...]
Addressing low quality powder and powder consistency when spray drying
Low-quality powder and powder consistency problems can be serious concerns for spray drying plants. Powder density, particle size, solubility and stability are important characteristics of optimum quality dry powders, and multiple factors are often to blame for causing powders, including milk powders, to be of inferior quality. Spray drying is a critical stage in the development of powder, and updating to more technologically advanced spray nozzles is often all that's required to correct issues with powder quality [...]
Keeping high hygiene standards when spraying drying powders
Spray nozzle technology in commercial spray dryer plants is complex because the spray nozzles must work at very high pressure levels within explosive powder zones. The quality of the powder is paramount and is subject to hygienic standards requirements. But traditional spray drying nozzles make it challenging to maintain high food hygiene standards because they’re so tough to clean properly. The O-ring grooves inside the nozzle cap of conventional nozzles are difficult to access and [...]
How to Minimise High Production Costs when Spray Drying Powder
Spray-dry powder nozzles are precise and complex devices that can impact a spray plant's profit if they're not operating optimally. One of the problems that can affect traditional spray nozzles is product build-up, or bearding, and this requires production to stop while nozzle cleaning is carried out. Bearding is a common phenomenon in inefficiently designed nozzles, and it slows down everything – from run times and productivity to profit. Using dated disassembly procedures such as impact [...]
Safety issues when spray drying powders
The risk of adverse events is ever-present in any spray drying operation. Spray drying is a physical–chemical process in which evaporation transforms liquid into dry powder – and wherever there's powder or dust in spray drying plants there's a risk of explosion or even fire. An effective means to reduce the safety hazards in spray drying plants is to minimise the likelihood of seal extrusion and leakage in spray nozzle design. Not only does this [...]
Problems and solutions in the commercial spray drying industry
Traditional spray nozzle technology has a number of problems that reduce production efficiency. These include low quality powder and powder consistency, bearding, sub-standard hygiene, maintenance wear and tear, and safety. One of the most troubling issues with traditional spray drying powder has been low-quality powder and powder consistency. While build-up may be caused by other issues such as dryer configuration, wider spray angles and powder formulation, in many cases the problem stems from sub-optimal nozzle [...]