Operación y simulación de un secador spray para la producción de pentaborato de sodio

Abstract

An experimental study of the operating conditions of a spray dryer for obtaining sodium pentaborate is presented. The amount of water evaporated the temperature of the feeding solution and inlet and outlet temperatures of the combustion gases going to the spray dryer are determined. Experiments are performed for selecting the type of nozzle and the pressure to be used to achieve good spraying that favors the evaporation of the solution and the formation of crystals. Various options to minimize the amount of dilution water, the energy consumption and the heat losses in the system are analyzed. To simulate the process, a computer program that performs the energy and material balances and determines the variables of interest is developed. It is concluded that the computer program is an adequate tool for obtaining values of the several variables of the process in a reliable and fast way.