Abstract: An improved laundry drier which includes an outer case as well as an inner case and a tub which is rotationally driven. There is provided a heating housing having heating elements contained therein. A blower is located beneath the heating elements in the heating housing. A first electromagnetic valve is located in a passage of a suction duct. A branch duct is formed into the passage and is in fluid communication with a suction end of the blower. A second electromagnetic valve is formed in the branch duct to control fluid communication between the passage of the suction duct and a spraying duct. There is provided a vacuum apparatus disposed therein. Hot air may be circulated through the spraying duct and finally through the blower and the heating elements in the heating housing during a drying process.

Abstract: A clothes dryer operating with a very high volume of air flow across the clothes thereby enabling a high percentage of air recirculation without sacrifice to drying time or efficiency. A cylindrical clothes drum is surrounded by an air tight casing. Radial perforations are formed along the entire cylindrical wall of the drum. Drying air is forced axially into the drum and radially expelled through the perforations. By expelling the air through the total area of all perforations, a high air flow is maintained without increasing exit velocity. The expelled air is drawn back between the drum and casing towards the drum air inlet. Over 80% of the expelled air is recirculated back into the drum resulting in expelled air having a high water vapor content. Consequently, the energy per pound of exhaust air is increased sufficiently to heat water for direct use in washing machines. In another embodiment, the high air flow is used to advantage with a lower percentage of recirculation to achieve reduced drying time.

Abstract: Low-rank coals, such as lignite, are dried by evaporating interstitial water therefrom in a superheated steam flow countercurrently passed through a sealed rotary cylindrical vessel. A composite steam discharged from the vessel is partially condensed to remove an amount of water therefrom substantially equal to the amount of water removed from the coal, with a resultant flow of residual steam reheated and returned to the cylindrical vessel for further drying of low-rank coal.

Abstract: An enhanced heat transfer process whereby solid particles are heated, dried, or cooled by a gas: Particles are repeatedly lifted and dropped as, for example, in flighted rotary drums. By forced recirculation, gas is passed through showering particles generally perpendicular to their plane of fall. Examples show gas forced to contact particles in this manner imparts an overall volumetric heat transfer coefficient to a rotary drum superior to that expected from classical literature or presently operating rotary drum heat exchangers. Disclosure teaches gas temperature adjustment between forced recirculations. Technique usage will reduce exchanger captial cost, increase energy efficiency, and reduce pollution problems. Also, prewetting of the particles in certain instances can be utilized to effect substantially increased pseudo volumetric heat transfer coefficients when cooling non-hygroscopic materials.

Abstract: A drying apparatus includes a drum rotatably arranged in an outer box and housing therein materials to be dried. An air supply device supplies heated air into the drum, and a heat exchanger cools air discharged from the drum by means of air taken from outside of the outer box to remove moisture from air discharged. The heat exchanger is formed by piling plural plates with plural pairs of first and second closing plates interposed therebetween and is provided with plural first and second passages which are arranged alternately and perpendicularly to each other. The heat exchanger is so arranged that the first passages are slanted inward the outer box by 45 degrees relative to the vertical direction.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process and apparatus for drying oil well cuttings. More particularly, the present invention relates to the direct thermal treatment of oil well drill cuttings whereby the cuttings will be freed from any excess liquid and removed for storage or disposal on site or bagging.

Abstract: A heat recycling apparatus operatively connected to a hot air chamber having an exhaust pipe and an intake. The apparatus includes an intake conduit having one end in which there is an opening. A peripheral edge surrounds the opening. The exhaust pipe has an aperture therein through which the one end of the intake conduit extends into the exhaust pipe. The peripheral edge is generally perpendicularly disposed with respect to the longitudinal axis of the exhaust pipe. The opening has an area of between approximately 30% and approximately 65% of the area of the exhaust pipe. A portion of the peripheral edge is contiguous with the wall of the exhaust pipe. The other end of the intake conduit is connected to the hot air chamber.

Abstract: In a laundry system including a washer, a dryer, and a water heater, the improvement of using a heat pipe to recover waste heat, whether it be from the hot air exhaust of the dryer or from the conductive losses from the dryer and to transfer that heat to the feed water of the water heater.

Abstract: A laundry dryer of the type having a pair of upstream and downstream side-by-side gas burners is modified by the removal of the upstream burner and replacing the burner with a reheat plenum. The reheat plenum is generally tear-shaped in cross section to provide an inlet portion having a relatively large airflow cross sectional area located laterally adjacent the burner so that the recirculated airflow enters the reheat plenum at a relatively low velocity conducive to settlement of lint therein at a point in the plenum away from high temperature heat exchange relation with the burner. The lower wall of the reheat plenum is angularly inclined and preferably curvilinear in contour and extends above the downstream burner in flame deflecting and heat exchange relation therewith to heat the recirculated air within the reheat plenum.

Abstract: An improved laundry dryer having a novel hot air compartment structure that heats recirculated exhaust air and fresh make-up air. The novel hot air compartment structure, in preferred form, includes an attic chamber defined by the dryer's housing. The attic chamber is divided into upper and lower subchambers, a heater housing being positioned within the lower subchamber. The heat source in the heater housing serves to directly heat fresh make-up air and recirculated exhaust air simultaneously within the heater housing, and also serves to heat up the upper and lower subchambers of the attic chamber. The recirculated exhaust air is introduced into the upper subchamber, thereby pre-heating same prior to introduction into the heater housing, and is subsequently introduced into the heater housing in a vertically downward flow path fashion.

Abstract: The rotatable dryer drum in a dehydrator for crop material is provided with a plurality of centrally disposed flighting panels for escalating turbulence in the material-entraining heated airflow passing through the drum as well as to increase the available heat transfer area, thereby significantly improving the efficiency of the dehydrator. The panels are supported in offset, thermally isolated relation to the sidewall of the drum by a series of elongate struts spaced along the length of the drum and extending between the sidewall and the panels such that the flighting resists thermal warpage and requires only a minimum amount of welding for installation. In preferred forms there is provided a dropout chamber adjacent the drum outlet for collecting material separated from the airflow, the chamber having a mechanical conveyor for bulk discharge of the collected material.

Abstract: In a process for recycling asphalt and aggregate containing composition, the improvement comprises separating the composition into a plurality of portions having different particle sizes, ranging from coarse to fine, introducing the particle portions into different mixing and heating drums, one of the drums being for the coarse particle portion, and one or more additional drums for smaller particle portions, and heating the particles in the respective drums with hot gases of combustion at temperatures below that which will burn the asphalt particles in each of the respective drums.

Abstract: This invention relates to a greenhouse, drying, storing and nursery system and entails a simple multi-purpose structure which includes the capability to effectively utilize solar energy within a greenhouse and is adapted to control temperature, humidity and other environmental parameters. The multi-purpose structure may be utilized as a drying structure wherein a crop material or some other suitable product may be placed within the greenhouse-drying structure and a curing and/or drying effect may be realized by passing a system of air through the product or material disposed therein. As a part of the curing and/or drying system, the device of the present invention is adapted to circulate a system of air through the structure and to effectively collect solar energy when available for use during the curing or drying period.

Abstract: A fiber sheet manufacturing apparatus, such as a paper machine, is described, including a rotary through dryer for drying the sheet material on the same foraminous conveyor where it is initially formed. The dryer is provided with a plurality of separate vacuum chambers circumferentially spaced within the foraminous dryer drum, which are each in registration with a different one of a plurality of sources of hot air outside of the drum. The hot air is transmitted through the sheet material and the conveyor into the vacuum chambers to dry the sheet material. Each of the vacuum chambers and the hot air sources is independently controlled to provide different temperatures and vacuum pressures for more efficient and versatile operation. The air is transmitted from the vacuum chambers out of the drum through their separate exhaust conduits extending through the end of the drum and spaced from the drum support bearings.

Abstract: A new industrial laundry dryer-conditioner is provided, within a single module, that has continuous flow capabilities for integration with advanced industrial washing apparatus, of the continuous flow type, for continuously and automatically processing laundry items through both the washing and the drying cycles.

Abstract: A gas clothes dryer comprising a cabinet having a rotatable cylinder therein for receiving the clothes to be dried. A gas burner head produces hot air which is conducted, through an appropriate duct, to the rear of the cylinder. An exhaust fan exhausts the air in the cylinder through the front of the cylinder thereby causing the hot air to flow from the rear to the front of the cylinder across the clothes to be dried. The duct comprises a wall in facing relationship to the rear of the cylinder and having openings therein through which the hot air passes to enter the cylinder. A portion of the duct extends forward and surrounds a portion of the cylinder and is spaced therefrom to define an air passage therebetween. Accordingly, the exhaust fan also causes ambient air to be drawn through the air passage and into the cylinder thereby to decrease air flow about the burner head. As a result, pilot light outage is minimized and, since the burner head operates at decreased air flow, flame burn-out is eliminated.

Abstract: The dryer under consideration has a gas burner located within a sheet metal housing, and passageways in and through the housing direct ambient air for combustion with fuel within the housing and subsequent discharge of the combined combustion gases through the inlet opening into the drum chamber. The exhaust opening from the drum chamber is ducted to the outside atmosphere but it is also ducted at a tee junction to a reclaimer housing that directs this diverted gas in heat exchange relation past the burner housing and to the drum chamber. Thus, a portion of such exhausted gases is reused, preferrably the reused gas should constitute approximately 50 to 70 percent of the total volume of gas used, and it is heated only by heat exchange contact with the burner housing; while the remainder of the drying gases comprises the ambient air heated by combustion in the burner with the gaseous fuel and is thus much hotter.

Abstract: The present invention provides a heated air recycle arrangement for a clothes dryer which can be advantageously used in a clothes dryer having an air supply; a heater arrangement for heating the air supplied by the air supply; a drying zone including having an inlet communicating with the air supply and an outlet, and further including receptacle means to retain clothes to be dried in the dryer; a blower to circulate heated air from the air supply through the drying zone; and an exhaust duct having an inlet communicating with the outlet from the drying zone and an outlet.

Abstract: A plurality of foraminous wedge-shaped tobacco leaf containers with leaf impaling means are arranged in a circular array on a plenum foundation having connections with an external burner and blower assembly. A center passage for hot curing air is surrounded by the array of containers and the air flows radially outwardly through the containers and tobacco leaves with the leaves oriented edgewise to the air flow. A return annular air passage surrounding the containers leads back to the plenum and exterior burner and fan assembly. The exterior wall of the apparatus is insulated to confine heat. The air circulation may be reversed in the apparatus.