CHEMICAL ENGINEERING LAB II

(CDB 3052)
EXPERIMENT 7:
TRAY DRYER
GROUP 1 MEMBERS

1) NAZRIL DANIEL BIN ABDULLAH

18996

2) NOOR HAFIZAINIE BINTI MOHD ZOHAN

19323

3) SAIDATUL SYAFIQAH BTE ABDUL RASHID

19417

4) AHMAD FARHAN BIN AHMAD AZHAR

18806

5) KOI ZI KANG

18868

LAB DEMONSTRATOR

: MR. DANIAL QADIR

DATE

: 25th FEBRUARY 2016

1|Page

INDEX
1. INTRODUCTION

2. RESULT AND ANALYSIS

3. DISCUSSION

14

4. CONCLUSION

17

5. REFERENCES

18

6. APPENDICES

19

2|Page

1.0 INTRODUCTION
Drying is the process of removal of water or another solvent by evaporation from solid, semisolid and even liquid. The process are naturally occurred process but the rate can be adjusted
by taking account of humidity, air movement, surrounding temperature and even design and
operation of the drying equipment itself. Drying is one of the particularly important process in
industry. From food processing industry up to non-food industry and even sludge treatment, all
of them involves drying process.
The purpose of drying are mainly to preserve an ingredient before being distributed. That is the
main reason that drying are usually the last process in any production industry. The final
product must be solid to be considered dried whether it is in the form of continuous sheet
(paper), long pieces (wood), particle (cereal grain) and even powder (salt).
To understand drying, we first need to understand dry bulb and wet bulb temperature. Dry Bulb
Temperature is basically the temperature of air freely exposed but shielded from radiation and
moisture. Because of this, Dry Bulb Temperature are sometimes called air temperature or true
thermodynamic temperature of air. Wet Bulb Temperature on the other hand is the
temperature of air that has passed through a large surface of liquid water in an insulated
channel. Wet Bulb Temperature are sometimes called as adiabatic saturation temperature
because the air has become saturated by passing through a constant-pressure, ideal, adiabatic
saturation chamber.
The main objective of this experiment is to determine the effect of air temperature and also air
velocity on the rate of drying. In experiment A, the temperature of air were manipulated and
3|Page

the mass of sand were recorded until it returns to its original weight. In experiment B, the
velocity of the air were manipulated and data were recorded over time until the mass of the
sand return to its original mass.

4|Page

2.0 PROCEDURES
EXP A: Effect of air temperature
1. The tray are filled with sand to the depth of about 10mm before its initial weight are
being measured. The water are then sprayed to the sand evenly. The tray are loaded
carefully into the drier to avoid any spillage and the weight of wet sand are measured.
2. Power control button are set at OFF before proceeding with the experiment.
3. The fan are switched to point 1.
4. Heater power control are then set to point A.
5. When the value of the heater power control are stable, the stopwatch was started (t=0)
and the value of dry bulb temperature, wet bulb temperature, relative humidity of the
air upstream of the sand tray are measured.
6. At the interval of 1 minutes, the weight of sand tray, Wet Bulb Temperature (Ti), Dry
Bulb Temperature (Tv) and the relative humidity (Hv and Hi) are being noted down until
the weight of the sand tray reach its original weight.
7. The experiment are repeated by changing the heater power control to point B. Noted
that the same air velocity and sand tray are being used for the sake of comparison.

EXP B: Effect of air velocity

1. The tray are filled with sand to the depth of about 10mm before its initial weight are
being measured. The water are then sprayed to the sand evenly. The tray are loaded
carefully into the drier to avoid any spillage and the weight of wet sand are measured.
5|Page

2. Power control button are set at OFF before proceeding with the experiment.
3. The fan are switched to point 2.
4. Heater power control are then set to point A.
5. When the value of the heater power control are stable, the stopwatch was started (t=0)
and the value of Dry Bulb Temperature (Tv), Wet Bulb Temperature (Ti), Relative
Humidity (Hv &Hi) of the air upstream of the sand tray are measured.
6. At the interval of 1 minutes, the weight of sand tray, Wet Bulb Temperature (Ti), Dry
Bulb Temperature (Tv) and the relative humidity (Hv and Hi) are being noted down until
the weight of the sand tray reach its original weight. Noted that the same air velocity
and sand tray are being used for the sake of comparison.

6|Page

3.0 RESULT AND ANALYSIS

2.1 Free Moisture Content
1. Conversion of data to rate of drying curve. Data obtained from a batch-drying experiment are
usually obtained as W total weight of the wet solid (dry solid plus moisture) at different time t
hours in the drying period. These data can be converted to rate of drying data in the following
ways. First, the data are recalculated. If W is the weight of the wet solid in kg total water plus
dry solid and Ws is the weight of the dry solid in kg,
=

Eq. (2.1.1)

For the given constant drying conditions, the equilibrium moisture content X* kg equilibrium
moisture/kg dry solid is determined. Then, the free moisture content X in kg free water/kg dry
solid is calculated for each value of Xt.
=

Eq. (2.1.2)

2.2 Drying Rate

Using the data calculated from Eq. (2.1.2), a plot of free moisture content X versus time t in h is
made as in Fig. 2.2(a). To obtain the rate of drying curve from this plot, the slopes of the
tangents drawn to the curve in Fig. 2.2(a) can be measured, which give values of dX/dt at given
values of t. The rate R is calculated for each point by

Eq. (2.2.1)

7|Page

Where R is drying rate in kg H2O/h.m2, Ls kg of dry solid used, and A exposed surface area for
drying in m2. In English units, R is lbm H2O/h.ft2, Ls is lbm dry solid, and A is ft2. For obtaining R
from Fig. 2.2(a), a value of Ls/A of 21.5kg/m2 was used. The drying-rate curve is then obtained
by plotting R versus the moisture content, as in Fig. 2.2(b).
Another method to obtain the rate-of-drying curve is to first calculate the weight loss X for a
t time. For example, if X1 = 0.350 at a time t1=1.68 h and x2=0.325 at a time t2=2.04 h, X/t =
(0.350-0.325)/(2.04-1.68).
=

0.3500.325

= (

2.041.68

) = -0.0694

This rate R is the average over the period 1.68 to 2.04 h and should be plotted at the average
concentration X = (0.350 + 0.325)/2 = 0.338.

8|Page

(a)

(b)
Figure 2.2 Typical drying-rate curve for constant drying conditions: (a) plot of data as free
moisture versus time, (b) rate of drying curve as rate versus free moisture content.

9|Page

Time
(min)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36

Weight of
liquid
488.20000
488.00000
487.70000
487.60000
487.50000
487.40000
487.30000
487.20000
487.10000
487.00000
487.10000
487.00000
486.90000
486.90000
486.80000
486.70000
486.60000
486.60000
486.50000
486.40000
486.40000
486.10000
486.10000
486.10000
486.00000
486.00000
485.90000
485.90000
485.80000
485.80000
485.80000
485.80000
485.80000
485.60000
485.50000
485.70000
485.60000

R
Xe
0.00598
0.00556
0.00495
0.00474
0.00453
0.00433
0.00412
0.00392
0.00371
0.0035
0.00371
0.0035
0.0033
0.0033
0.00309
0.00288
0.00268
0.00268
0.00247
0.00227
0.00227
0.00165
0.00165
0.00165
0.00144
0.00144
0.00124
0.00124
0.00103
0.00103
0.00103
0.00103
0.00103
0.00062
0.00041
0.00082
0.00062

H1
93.10000
77.50000
68.00000
61.30000
55.50000
52.70000
49.70000
49.10000
47.90000
470000
46.10000
45.70000
44.80000
44.10000
44.80000
44.20000
43.80000
43.10000
43.00000
42.80000
42.20000
42.20000
42.30000
42.30000
42.60000
42.00000
41.80000
41.70000
41.80000
41.70000
41.90000
41.90000
41.60000
41.30000
41.60000
41.90000
41.60000

H2
75.20000
67.10000
61.30000
57.50000
53.70000
45.10000
48.70000
48.10000
47.10000
46.30000
45.40000
45.20000
44.30000
43.70000
44.20000
43.60000
43.20000
42.70000
42.60000
42.60000
42.00000
41.80000
41.90000
41.90000
41.90000
41.40000
41.40000
41.20000
41.40000
41.40000
41.20000
41.40000
41.10000
40.90000
41.10000
41.30000
41.00000

Tv
24.30000
25.30000
27.30000
28.30000
29.20000
29.10000
30.50000
31.00000
31.30000
31.50000
31.70000
32.00000
32.10000
32.30000
32.40000
32.40000
32.60000
32.80000
32.90000
32.90000
32.90000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.00000
33.10000
33.10000
33.10000
33.10000
33.10000

Ti
24.20000
25.00000
26.80000
27.70000
28.50000
29.20000
29.90000
30.20000
30.60000
30.80000
31.10000
31.30000
31.50000
31.70000
31.80000
31.90000
32.00000
32.20000
32.30000
32.30000
32.30000
32.40000
32.40000
32.40000
32.40000
32.40000
32.40000
32.40000
32.50000
32.54000
32.50000
32.50000
32.50000
32.50000
32.50000
32.60000
32.60000

Tv-Ti
0.10000
0.30000
0.50000
0.60000
0.70000
-0.10000
0.60000
0.80000
0.70000
0.70000
0.60000
0.70000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.50000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.50000
0.46000
0.50000
0.50000
0.60000
0.60000
0.60000
0.50000
0.50000

( 2

0.00041
0.00062
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
-0.0002
0.00021
0.00021
0.00000
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00000
0.00021
0.00021
0.00000
0.00062
0.00000
0.00000
0.00021
0.00000
0.00021
0.00000
0.00021
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00041
0.00021
-0.00040
0.00021
10 | P a g e

485.60000
485.60000
485.50000
485.50000
485.40000
485.40000
485.40000
485.40000
485.50000
485.40000
485.50000
485.40000
485.50000
485.30000
485.30000
485.30000

0.00062
0.00062
0.00041
0.00041
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00021
0.00041
0.00021
0.00041
0.00021
0.00041
0
0
0

41.50000 41.10000 33.10000 32.60000

41.80000 41.50000 33.10000 32.60000
41.70000 41.30000 33.10000 32.60000
42.10000 41.50000 33.10000 32.60000
41.60000 41.00000 33.10000 32.60000
41.60000 40.90000 33.10000 32.60000
41.50000 40.90000 33.10000 32.60000
42.10000 41.30000 33.10000 32.60000
42.10000 41.30000 33.10000 32.70000
42.10000 41.30000 33.20000 32.70000
41.80000 41.00000 33.20000 32.70000
41.90000 41.10000 33.20000 32.70000
42.40000 41.60000 33.30000 32.70000
41.80000 41.00000 33.30000 32.80000
42.40000 41.50000 33.30000 32.80000
41.90000 41.10000 33.30000 32.80000
Table 1: Table of results for Experiment A, part I

0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.40000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000
0.60000
0.50000
0.50000
0.50000

0.00000
0.00000
0.00021
0.00000
0.00021
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
-0.00020
0.00021
-0.00020
0.00021
-0.00020
0.00041
0.00000
0.00000

Moisture,Xe vs Time
0.007
0.006
0.005
0.004

Xe

37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52

0.003

Series1

0.002

Linear (Series1)

0.001

0
-0.001 0
-0.002

y = -0.0001x + 0.0047
20
40
R = 0.9147

60

t (min)

Graph 1: Graph of moisture vs time

11 | P a g e

Drying Rate vs Moisture

0.0008
0.0006

Drying Rate

0.0004
0.0002

0
-0.001
0
-0.0002

0.001

0.002

0.003

0.004

0.005

0.006

-0.0004
-0.0006

Moisture

Graph 2: Graph of drying rate vs moisture

Time
(min)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18

Weightof
liquid
654.20000
653.90000
653.80000
653.70000
653.60000
653.40000
653.20000
653.00000
652.90000
652.90000
652.80000
652.70000
652.60000
652.50000
652.50000
652.40000
652.40000
652.30000
652.20000

Xe
0.00414
0.00368
0.00353
0.00338
0.00322
0.00292
0.00261
0.0023
0.00215
0.00215
0.002
0.00184
0.00169
0.00153
0.00153
0.00138
0.00138
0.00123
0.00107

H1
48.50000
43.30000
40.10000
37.70000
35.50000
34.40000
32.70000
32.20000
31.60000
31.30000
31.00000
30.70000
30.40000
30.50000
30.30000
30.30000
30.00000
30.40000
30.00000

H2
20.80000
42.90000
40.40000
38.30000
36.40000
35.40000
33.60000
33.10000
32.50000
32.10000
31.80000
31.60000
31.30000
31.40000
31.20000
31.20000
30.80000
31.20000
30.80000

Tv
31.10000
32.80000
33.70000
34.80000
35.60000
36.30000
37.10000
37.50000
37.70000
38.00000
38.10000
38.30000
38.30000
38.40000
38.50000
38.60000
38.60000
38.60000
38.70000

Ti
30.20000
31.90000
32.70000
33.80000
34.70000
35.30000
36.20000
36.60000
36.80000
37.10000
37.30000
37.40000
37.50000
37.60000
37.50000
37.70000
37.80000
37.80000
37.90000

Tv-Ti
0.90000
0.90000
1.00000
1.00000
0.90000
1.00000
0.90000
0.90000
0.90000
0.90000
0.80000
0.90000
0.80000
0.80000
1.00000
0.90000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000

R
2
(
)

0.00046
0.00015
0.00015
0.00015
0.00031
0.00031
0.00031
0.00015
0.00000
0.00015
0.00015
0.00015
0.00015
0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00015
0.00015
12 | P a g e

652.20000
652.10000
652.10000
652.10000
652.00000
652.00000
651.90000
651.80000
651.80000
651.80000
651.70000
651.70000
651.70000
651.60000
651.60000
651.60000
651.60000
651.50000
651.50000
651.50000

0.00107
0.00092
0.00092
0.00092
0.00077
0.00077
0.00061
0.00046
0.00046
0.00046
0.00031
0.00031
0.00031
0.00015
0.00015
0.00015
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000

30.00000 30.70000 38.80000 37.90000

30.00000 30.70000 38.80000 38.00000
30.30000 31.00000 38.80000 38.00000
29.60000 30.40000 38.80000 38.00000
30.00000 30.60000 38.80000 38.00000
30.10000 30.70000 38.80000 38.00000
29.70000 30.40000 38.80000 38.00000
30.40000 31.00000 38.80000 38.00000
30.60000 31.20000 38.80000 38.00000
30.00000 30.70000 38.80000 38.00000
30.10000 30.60000 38.80000 38.00000
30.10000 30.80000 38.80000 38.00000
30.00000 30.50000 38.90000 38.10000
30.50000 31.00000 38.90000 38.10000
30.20000 31.00000 39.00000 38.20000
30.10000 30.80000 39.00000 38.20000
30.50000 31.20000 39.10000 38.30000
30.10000 30.70000 39.20000 38.40000
29.70000 30.30000 39.20000 38.50000
29.80000 23.20000 39.30000 38.50000
Table 2: Table of Experiment A, part II

0.90000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.80000
0.70000
0.80000

0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00015
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00015
0.00000
0.00000

Moisture,Xe vs Time
0.005
0.004

0.003
Xe

19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38

Series1

0.002

Linear (Series1)

0.001

y = -0.0001x + 0.0035
R = 0.9235

0
0
-0.001

10

20

30

40

t (min)

Graph 3: Graph of moisture vs time

13 | P a g e

Drying Rate,Rc vs Moisture

0.0005

Drying Rate

0.0004
0.0003
0.0002
0.0001
0
-0.001

0
-0.0001

0.001

0.002

0.003

0.004

Moisture

Graph 4: Graph of drying rate vs moisture

Time
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19

Weightof
liquid
Xe
H1
573.90000 0.00385 44.60000
573.70000 0.00350 48.40000
573.50000 0.00315 49.80000
573.20000 0.00262 49.80000
573.10000 0.00245 49.50000
572.90000 0.00210 50.00000
572.80000 0.00192 49.90000
572.70000 0.00175 49.50000
572.60000 0.00157 48.60000
572.50000 0.00140 49.00000
572.50000 0.00140 49.80000
572.40000 0.00122 50.00000
572.50000 0.00140 50.60000
572.30000 0.001050 50.60000
572.30000 0.00105 50.90000
572.20000 0.00088 50.90000
572.10000 0.00070 51.50000
572.20000 0.00088 52.90000
572.10000 0.00070 51.80000
572.10000 0.00070 52.40000

H2
43.90000
45.50000
46.00000
45.90000
45.70000
46.30000
45.70000
45.30000
45.00000
45.50000
45.80000
45.90000
46.30000
46.30000
46.70000
46.50000
47.00000
47.80000
47.10000
47.40000

TI
31.60000
31.00000
31.00000
31.10000
31.10000
31.20000
31.30000
31.30000
31.10000
30.90000
30.70000
30.60000
30.60000
30.40000
30.30000
30.20000
30.10000
30.10000
30.10000
30.00000

Tv
32.50000
31.50000
31.30000
31.40000
31.40000
31.50000
31.60000
31.60000
31.40000
31.20000
31.00000
30.80000
30.70000
30.60000
30.50000
30.40000
30.30000
30.30000
30.30000
30.30000

Tv-Ti
0.90000
0.50000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.30000
0.20000
0.10000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.30000

R
2
(
)

0.00035
0.00035
0.000525
0.000175
0.00035
0.000175
0.000175
0.000175
0.000175
0.00000
0.000175
-0.00017
0.00035
0.00000
0.000175
0.000175
-0.00017
0.000175
0.00000
14 | P a g e

572.10000
572.00000
572.00000
572.00000
572.00000
572.00000
571.90000
571.90000
571.90000
571.90000
571.90000
571.90000
571.80000
571.80000
571.80000
571.70000
571.70000
571.70000

0.00070
0.000525
0.000525
0.000525
0.000525
0.000525
0.00035
0.00035
0.00035
0.00035
0.00035
0.00035
0.000175
0.000175
0.000175
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000

51.80000 47.10000 30.00000 30.20000

52.10000 47.30000 29.90000 30.10000
52.50000 47.40000 29.90000 30.10000
52.90000 47.70000 29.90000 30.10000
53.20000 48.00000 29.80000 30.10000
53.10000 47.80000 29.80000 30.10000
53.30000 47.90000 29.90000 30.10000
53.00000 48.00000 29.90000 30.10000
52.80000 47.60000 29.80000 30.10000
52.90000 47.80000 29.80000 30.00000
52.90000 47.80000 29.70000 30.00000
52.80000 47.80000 29.70000 30.00000
53.40000 48.40000 29.80000 30.00000
52.50000 47.90000 29.90000 30.10000
52.60000 47.60000 30.00000 30.20000
52.50000 47.60000 30.00000 30.20000
52.70000 48.00000 30.00000 30.20000
53.20000 48.00000 30.00000 30.30000
Table 3: Table of Experiment B

0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.30000
0.30000
0.20000
0.20000
0.30000
0.20000
0.30000
0.30000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.20000
0.30000

0.00000
0.000175
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.000175
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.00000
0.000175
0.00000
0.00000
0.000175
0.00000
0.00000

Moisture, Xe vs Time
0.0045
0.004

0.0035
Moisture, Xe

20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37

0.003
0.0025
0.002

Xe

0.0015
0.001
0.0005
0
-0.0005 0

10

20
Time (min)

30

40

Graph 5: Graph of Moisture vs Time

15 | P a g e

Rate of drying vs Moisture

0.0006
0.0005

Rate of drying

0.0004
0.0003
0.0002
Rc

0.0001

0
-0.001-0.0001 0

0.001

0.002

0.003

0.004

-0.0002
-0.0003

Moisture

Graph 6: Graph of Rate of drying vs Moisture

ERROR AND RECOMMENDATIONS

From this experiment that we had conducted, several errors had occurred and affect the
accuracy of our experimental results. Therefore, we have listed some recommendations to
overcome the errors and improve the results.
I.

Error: Amount of water sprayed onto the sand might not be even
Recommendation: A fresh batch of dry sand should be sprayed more evenly by adjusting
the water sprayer to produce finer water mist.

II.

Error: Irregular reading of weighing scale can lead to inaccuracy of the experimental
results.
Recommendation: Make sure that the screws supporting the sand tray are tight so that
it will not shake when blown by air. Weighing scale should be calibrated well before

16 | P a g e

starting the experiment and avoid placing any things near the weighing balance to avoid
any random errors.
III.

Error: Reading of flow rate meter fluctuates during the experiment.

Recommendation: To obtain more accurate reading, use software to get the average
reading.

IV.

Size of sand used consists of different sizes and can affect the drying rate
Recommendation: The sand can be filtered so that the size will be even.

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3.0 DISCUSSION
In our experiments, the discussions of drying are concerned with the removal of water
from sand. For Experiment A, we investigated on the influence of air temperature on the drying
rate of a wet solid in air at a fixed velocity. Heater A which has a lower heating power is used
for set A(I) while heater B which has a higher heating power is used for Set A(II). From the graph
of moisture content vs time, both sets A(I) and A(II) exhibit a decreasing trend in which
moisture decreases with time. However, we can see that set A(II) takes a shorter period to dry
the wet sand at which the weight is reduced back to its initial weight. This is because a higher
heating power produces more heat energy which allows temperature to elevate faster and then
the drying process becomes more rapid.
As from the graph of drying rate vs moisture content, there is a general trend of an
increase followed by a decrease of drying rates. Initially, the rate increases as the surface
temperature increases to equilibrate with the air temperature. The film of water on the surface
is entirely unbound begins to evaporate as it would on a free liquid surface. At this point, the
drying rate should remain constant for a while. However, this is not observed in both the
graphs of drying rate vs moisture content as the film is probably extremely thin and the sand
very porous. As seen in the graph, after the peak, the rate decreases as the wetted surface area
decreases until the surface is completely dry. The heat is then transferred through the sand and
water is vaporized from within the pores. This occurs very slowly. The drying rate from time to
time fluctuates a lot due to the inconsistency of air velocity.
For Experiment B, we investigated on the effect of air velocity on the drying rate of wet
solid in air of fixed temperature and humidity. From the graph of moisture content vs time, set
18 | P a g e

B shows a shorter time period of drying as compared to set A(II). When the drying is conducted
at a higher air velocity, there is a second inflection point. The reason for this is due to the higher
drying rate. This causes the surface to undergo case hardening as it becomes closely packed.
This prevents the vaporized water from beneath the surface to be released. As the drying
continues, the surface begins to shrink and crack thus releasing the vapour.

WEAKNESSES AND IMPROVEMENT

After conducting this experiment of tray dryer, we have identified several weaknesses that
affected our experimental results and thus, we have listed some recommendations to improve
the efficiency of our results. Before starting this experiment, weighing scale must be calibrated
well so that it shows correct reading when weighing the sand throughout the experiment. We
also need to make sure that the screws supporting the sand tray are tight so that it will not
shake when blown by air. Also, we must not place any things near the weighing balance to
avoid any random error when measuring the sand. As this experiment needs to determine the
drying rate of wet solid, the sand must be saturated with water. The amount of water sprayed
must be same and make sure that the sand is sprayed evenly by adjusting the water sprayer to
produce finer water mist. The total weight of sand must be recorded at regular time interval as
well as the reading of dry bulb and wet bulb temperature and relative humidity. The person in
charge of recording the data must be alert so that the reading is taken at the exact time
interval.

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4. CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we managed to investigate the influence of air temperature on the drying
rate of a wet solid and the influence of air velocity on the drying rate of wet solid in air of fixed
temperature and humidity. All in all, we deduce that the increase of air velocity and
temperature increases the drying rate as seen from the graph of moisture content vs time and
graph of drying rate vs moisture content.
The shown graphs are roughly similar to the typical drying curves shown by our
reference (Geankoplis, 2003). However lots of fluctuations occurs due to inconsistency of the
20 | P a g e

air velocity and also surrounding temperature. A number of recommendations were suggested
to improve the results of the experiment, nevertheless the results obtained are sufficient in
proving the relation between drying rate and air velocity for a certain drying curve.
The second inflection point on the high temperature and high air velocity charts are
probably caused by case hardening. The optimum drying conditions cant be determined since
the power consumption of the fan and heater could not be determined and the initial fraction
of water in sand is not held constant.

5.0 REFERENCES

1. Nall, D. H. (2004-11). Looking across the water: Climate-adaptive buildings in the United
States & Europe. In The Construction Specifier, 57, 50 56.

2. The Engineering Toolbox (2014). Dry Bulb, Wet Bulb and Dew Point Temperatures
Retrieved (March 1st 2016) from: http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/dry-wet-bulbdew-point-air-d_682.html

21 | P a g e

3. Geankoplis, C. J., Transport Processes and Unit Operations, 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall,
1995.

6.0 APPENDICES
1. Moisture Calculation, Xe
=

()

For Experiment A1, Dry mass = 485.3g:

,=0 =

654.2 485.3g
= 0.005976
485.3g

The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the table.

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For Experiment A2, Dry mass = 651.5g:

,=0 =

654.2 651.5g
= 0.004144
651.5g

The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the table.

For Experiment B2, Dry mass =571.7g
,=0 =

573.9 571.7g
= 0.003838
571.7g

The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the table.

2. Drying Rate, R
=

For experiment A1:

( = 1) =

,=1 ,=0

R( = 1) =

0.0055640.005976
10

R( = 1) = 0.000412/
The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the graph.

For experiment A2:

( = 1) =

,=1 ,=0

R( = 1) =

0.0036830.004144
10

R( = 1) = 0.000461/
The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the graph.

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For experiment B2:

( = 1) =

,=1 ,=0

R( = 1) =

0.0034980.003848
10

R( = 1) = 0.000349/
The rest of the calculation are tabulated in the graph.

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