As mentioned in my post last week. The supply side of compressed air systems within a facility is critical to production. The quality of air produced by your compressor and sent to the demand side of the system needs to be filtered for both moisture and particulate. One method to dry the air, that is the topic for this blog, is deliquescent type dryers.
These dryers operate like an adsorbent dryer such as a desiccant medium dryer. The main variance is that the drying medium (desiccant) actually undergoes a phase change from solids to liquids. Because of this the material is used up and cannot be returned to its original state for reuse. The liquids formed by the desiccant dissolving in the removed water vapor are then filtered out of the air stream before it is passed on to the demand side of the air system.
There are many compounds that are used to absorb the moisture in the wet compressed air. A few options are potassium, calcium, or sodium salts and many that contain a urea base. The desiccant compound must be maintained at a minimum level for the dryer to contain enough media to successfully dry the air.
These dryers are generally a single tank system that is fed with compressed air from a side port near the bottom of the tank. The air then travels up past drip trays where the desiccant and water mixture fall and ultimately ends up in the bottom of the tank. The air then goes through a material bed that must be kept at a given level in order to correctly absorb the moisture in the air. The dry air is then pushed out the top of the tank.
As the desiccant material absorbs the liquid from the compressed air flowing through the tank it falls onto the drip trays and then into the bottom of the tank where it is drained out of the system. This process can be seen in the image below.
The dew point that this style dryer is able to achieve is dependent on several variables:
- Compressed air temperature
- Compressed air pressure / velocity
- Size and configuration of the tank
- Compression of the absorption media
- Type of absorption media and age of media
These dryers are simplistic in their design because there are no moving parts as well as easy to install and carry a low startup cost.
Some disadvantages include:
- Dewpoint range 20°F – 30°F (Again this is according to the media used.)
- Dissolved absorption material can pose a disposal issue as it may not be able to be simply put down a drain
- Replacement of the absorption material
Even with disadvantages the ability to supply the demand side of a compressed air system for a production facility is key to maintaining successful operations. If you would like to discuss any type of compressed air dryer, please contact us.
Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF
1 – Deliquescent Dryer Image: VMAC Air Innovated: The Deliquescent Dryer – https://www.vmacair.com/blog/the-deliquescent-dryer/