New Single-Stage Drying System from Conair Gives Processors More Control, Saves Energy

A new drying system from The Conair Group, Inc., allows users to optimize drying conditions, save energy and produce high-quality finished products more efficiently. The EnergySmart™ Single-Stage (ES-1) system was developed for processors of PET and other polymers that require high drying temperatures, applications in which throughput varies and where electrical costs are high. It takes advantage of technology perfected in the original two-stage EnergySmart system and applies it to a less-costly single-stage dryer configuration. The dryers can handle resin throughputs between 400 lbs/hr and 5000 lbs/hr (182 kg/hr and 2273 kg/hr).

In the ES-1, several Conair technologies are used to slash energy waste and provide a higher degree of control over the drying process. In Optimizer™ Mode, the new TouchView™ dryer control uses information gathered by a Conair Drying Monitor™ and regulates air temperature, dew point and air flow. Just enough heat energy is added to the bed of material in the drying hopper to maintain an optimum temperature profile. Too much air flow will result in wasted energy; too little air flow will result in poor drying performance. Once the proper conditions are established, they can be locked in with the touch of a finger. The controls have the ability to fine-tune the air flow, temperature and dew point to maintain a stable temperature within the hopper regardless of throughput changes or variations in material temperature or ambient conditions. Settings can also be memorized for instant recall.

“It’s like cruise control on a car,” explains Jamie Jamison, Product Manager, Dryers. “Once you’ve established the right conditions, you simply touch the control screen and Optimizer Mode takes over. It’s just that simple and easy.”

Built around a Conair Carousel Plus™ desiccant dryer, which delivers air dried to a -40°F (-40°C) dew point, the ES-1 is especially well-suited to applications involving resins like PET that require precision drying at temperatures as high as 350°F (177°C). In this application, it can deliver an average energy savings of between 35 and 45% compared to conventional dryers. Return on investment, based on energy savings alone, can be as little as 6 to 9 months. The ES-1 can be used with materials like polycarbonate, which dries at 250°F (121°C), or even ABS, which dries at 180°F (82°C). Because these drying applications are less energy intensive, the payback period may be somewhat longer than those projected for PET drying, but the EnergySmart Single-Stage offers other attractive benefits besides energy savings, Jamison says.

The Drying Monitor™ and the TouchView™ dryer control act as an early warning system. If a filter becomes clogged, for instance, and air flow to the drying hopper is reduced to the point that it cannot heat the entire volume of material, the change in the temperature profile will be detected and an alarm will sound. Without this unique technology, the problem may not be discovered until hours later when defective product is produced. Then the process needs to be shut down while the problem is diagnosed and corrected and fresh material is dried. It could be hours before production could be restarted. With the ES-1 and TouchView control, problems like this can be detected and resolved immediately, before valuable resin and processing time is wasted.

The TouchView control is remarkably easy to use. Confusing alarm codes and hard-to-navigate parameters are replaced with full-color, easy-to-read touch-activated graphics and status indicators. Each screen of the control displays all parameters and allows each to be individually altered for maximum control over the process. The unit scans critical temperatures, dew points and other valuable data every 15 seconds and then stores it for 40 hours. When viewed in the form of trending graphs, this information becomes invaluable for quality control validation and for troubleshooting.

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