Experimental method for designing a biomass bed dryer

In this paper, the bed drying of wooden biomass particles has been studied with a particular focus on the so-called drying zone, where the actual drying takes place. Drying experiments and continuous bed temperature measurements were performed in a small experimental batch dryer. The experiments indicate that the drying zone velocity increases with increasing drying temperature and air velocity but is not influenced by its height position. Further, the width of the drying zone increases with increasing air velocity and height position, but is not influenced by temperature. Cross-sectional variations of the front velocity as well as the drying zone width were observed. An evaluation method based on the measurements was developed and is presented as a first step towards designing a continuous biomass bed dryer. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.