ROTARY BIOMASS DRYER
First Claim
1. Apparatus for reducing a moisture content of a biomass material that is relatively wet, comprising:
- (a) a prime mover;
(b) an elongate housing extending between a proximal end and a distal end, said housing having an inlet disposed adjacent to the proximal end for receiving the relatively wet biomass material and an outlet disposed adjacent to the distal end, through which the biomass material passes after being dried to a substantially lower moisture content; and
(c) a generally helical screw shaft disposed within the elongate housing and drivingly coupled to the prime mover so as to be rotated thereby about a longitudinal axis of said shaft, in a direction selected so that helical screw threads formed on said shaft force the biomass material entering through the inlet to move through the housing, toward the distal end, and then out through the outlet of the housing, wherein the biomass material is compressed as it moves through the elongate housing, forcing moisture from the biomass material, friction resulting from the compression and movement of the biomass material through the housing also heating the biomass material sufficiently to drive out much of the moisture remaining in the biomass material.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A biomass drying system includes a rotary biomass dryer that includes a helically threaded auger shaft rotatably driven by a prime mover, such as an electric motor. No external source of heat is required to dry a wet biomass material that is supplied to an input of the biomass dryer. Instead, the helical threads on the shaft have a variable width, designed to gradually increase the compression applied as the biomass material is advanced through a generally cylindrical bore in the biomass dryer. A variable compression nozzle is disposed at a distal end of the bore and can be adjusted to achieve a desired level of a parameter such as the moisture content of the dried biomass material produced by the system. The variable compression nozzle, which can be automatically controlled, includes longitudinally extending segments that are forced radially inwardly to increase the compression force applied to the biomass material.
120 Citations
28 Claims
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1. Apparatus for reducing a moisture content of a biomass material that is relatively wet, comprising:
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(a) a prime mover; (b) an elongate housing extending between a proximal end and a distal end, said housing having an inlet disposed adjacent to the proximal end for receiving the relatively wet biomass material and an outlet disposed adjacent to the distal end, through which the biomass material passes after being dried to a substantially lower moisture content; and (c) a generally helical screw shaft disposed within the elongate housing and drivingly coupled to the prime mover so as to be rotated thereby about a longitudinal axis of said shaft, in a direction selected so that helical screw threads formed on said shaft force the biomass material entering through the inlet to move through the housing, toward the distal end, and then out through the outlet of the housing, wherein the biomass material is compressed as it moves through the elongate housing, forcing moisture from the biomass material, friction resulting from the compression and movement of the biomass material through the housing also heating the biomass material sufficiently to drive out much of the moisture remaining in the biomass material. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for drying a wet biomass material to reduce its moisture content, producing a substantially drier biomass material, comprising the steps of:
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(a) supplying an input of the wet biomass material that is to be dried; (b) rotating a shaft to advance the wet biomass material through a housing; (c) frictionally heating and compressing the wet biomass material as it moves through the housing using mechanical energy supplied by the rotating shaft and without requiring heating from any external heat source, so that moisture is forced from the wet biomass material and evaporated, leaving a substantially drier biomass material; and (d) forcing the substantially drier biomass material from the housing for subsequent use. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. Apparatus for reducing a moisture content of a biomass material, comprising:
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(a) a prime mover; and (b) a mechanical compression device that is coupled to the prime mover and driven by it, the mechanical compression device including an inlet for receiving the biomass material and an outlet through which the biomass material that has been dried passes after being conveyed through the compression device, the mechanical compression device being configured for compressing the biomass material to remove moisture and for heating the biomass material using friction resulting from movement of the biomass material through the compression device, wherein the heating of the biomass material due to the friction further dries the biomass material by vaporizing much of the moisture remaining in the biomass material to substantially reduce its moisture content, without requiring heating by an external source of heat. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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Specification