Variable flow rate dehumidification plant and process for granular materials

• US 8,021,462 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2008
• Issued: 09/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Moretto S.p.A. (Faita SA)
• Original Assignee: Moretto S.p.A. (Faita SA)
• Inventors: Moretto, Renato
• Primary Examiner(s): LAWRENCE JR, FRANK M
• Application Number:
  US12/153,784
• Publication Number:
  US 20080295354A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,215 Days
• Field of Search: 961/09, 961/10, 961/12, 961/21, 95/14, 95/23, 951/17, 951/21, 951/22, 951/23, 951/48, 34/80, 344/43, 344/72, 344/73, 344/76, 345/07
• US Class Current: 95/14
• CPC Class Codes: B29B 13/065 of powder or pellets
• CPC Class Codes: B29B 9/16 Auxiliary treatment of granules
• CPC Class Codes: F26B 21/083 by using sorbent or hygroscopic materials, e.g. chemical substances, molecular sieves

Abstract

A dehumidification plant for granular material, comprising hopper having loading mouth and discharge mouth for granular material, upper feeding mouth in the hopper and lower delivery mouth of a gaseous medium, humidity absorbent material designed to absorb the humidity conveyed by the gaseous medium; towers arranged to contain the absorbent material; supplying arrangement designed to feed the gaseous medium to the hopper and the towers; electronic control unit; detection structure arranged to detect process variables of the plant and electrically connected with the electronic control unit. The plant further comprises distribution structure designed to distribute gaseous medium from of the towers thereby feeding it to another tower from among the towers, the distribution structure being controllable by the electronic control unit between open position, portion of the gaseous medium contained in the of the towers is fed to the towers, and closed position.

Claims

1. A regeneration process of at least one tower of a dehumidification plant of a granular material, comprising

prearranging a dehumidification plant for a granular material, comprising at least one hopper having at least one loading mouth and one discharge mouth for said granular material, at least one upper feeding mouth in said at least one hopper and at least one lower delivery mouth of a gaseous medium therefrom, humidity absorbent material designed to absorb the humidity conveyed by said gaseous medium;

at least two towers arranged to contain said absorbent material;

supplying structure designed to feed said gaseous medium to said at least one hopper and said at least two towers;

at least one electronic control unit;

detection structure arranged to detect process variables of said plant and electrically connected with said at least one electronic control unit,

said supplying structure including at least one first blower,

said plant further including comprising distribution structure designed to distribute gaseous medium coming from at least one of said at least two towers thereby feeding it to at least another tower from among said at least two towers, said distribution structure including a second blower equipped with a rotation speed variation device,

detecting the process variables of said plant and

adjusting, as a function of the detected process variables, the rotation of said second blower, thereby adjusting the supply flow rate of gaseous medium to said at least one tower.

2. A process according to claim 1, comprising the following steps in sequence:

detecting the process variables of said plant and adjusting, as a function of the detected process variables, the supply flow rate of gaseous medium to said at least one tower.

3. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 1, comprising:

detecting at least one temperature signal via a temperature probe and by at least one probe located at at least one of said at least two towers; and

adjusting the opening/closing of at least one adjusting valve as a function of the signals detected in said detection step, thereby obtaining a predetermined temperature for said gaseous medium to be fed to said at least two towers in processing phase.

4. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 1, comprising an adjusting step of the flow of a gaseous medium intended to regenerate said absorbent material as a function of the granular material to be dehumidified and/or type of absorbent material and/or said process variable detection structure.

5. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 1, detecting the flow rate by measuring the flow rate of said gaseous medium;

detecting the temperature at said gaseous medium inlet mouth in said at least one hopper; and

controlling said rotation speed variation structure as a function of the detected data.

6. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 1, wherein an emission of said gaseous medium coming from at least one of said at least two towers when in processing phase to at least one of said at least two towers in regeneration phase occurs when a heater upstream of said at least one of said at least two towers in regeneration phase is turned on.

7. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 1, wherein said distribution structure being controllable by said at least one electronic control unit between at least one open position, in which at least one portion of said gaseous medium contained in said at least one of said at least two towers is fed to said at least another of said at least two towers, and at least one closed position.

8. A regeneration process as claimed in claim 7, wherein said distribution structure comprises at least one first valve, at least one duct intended to place said first valve in fluid communication with at least one of said at least two towers, at least one duct between at least another of said at least two towers and said first valve,

and wherein said distribution structure comprises pressurization structure for said gaseous medium, said pressurization structure of said gaseous medium comprising said at least one second blower arranged to intercept said at least one duct intended to place in fluid communication said first valve and at least one of said at least two towers, and said distribution structure comprises at least one adjusting device arranged to adjust the rotation speed of said blower.