Drying Chemical Powder Using a Microwave Dryer

The idea of using microwaves for heating and cooking is not a new one in the heating/drying sectors, but the use of them for drying is relatively new and gaining enormous popularity due to the many features and benefits they offer. We, at Shlantai, are among the first few organizations to have begun promoting the useful use of microwave drying systems, either as supporting systems or full-fledged systems.

What is drying in a microwave?

Simply put, microwave dryers are dryers that use microwave energy, which is created by cavity magnetrons and manifests as fast electromagnetic waves. The water molecules within the material are energized by the collision of these waves with them, which produces heat in a relatively short period of time. This method of producing heat has become highly popular since it produces a great deal of controlled heat with very little input. Using microwaves makes it simple to manage the amount of heat released.

The benefits that microwave technology offers are not lost on the chemical industry, but acceptance has been gradual due to the difficulty in drying chemical materials at low temperatures, which has led to strict quality standards being the main determinant of drying conditions. In order to transform a liquid or slurry substance into powder, the drying process for liquids and slurries must be heated to cause the water to evaporate, changing the material's shape.

The final stage before a chemical powder is packed is often the drying process. Since most chemical powders are temperature-sensitive, drying at a lower temperature is necessary to prevent deterioration. By lowering the moisture content without compromising the quality of the final product at a lower temperature (80-90°C), Shlantai's microwave drying technology helps to solve this issue.Microwave drying is a promising drying technology since a considerable decrease in drying time is frequently accompanied by an increase in product quality. Approximately 95% of the machine's surfaces are comprised of stainless steel. It makes use of cutting-edge technologies such a PLC control system, temperature control system, camera monitoring system, automatic feeding system, and other sophisticated ones.

Chemical dryer

Chemical raw materials can be dried and dehydrated in powdered or granular form using microwave lithium hydroxide drying equipment. As an illustration, consider the following compounds: strontium carbonate, nickel hydroxide, green silicon carbide, lithium carbonate, lithium hydroxide, copper sulfate pentahydrate, polymer, additives, cobalt oxalate, ammonia paratungstate, lithium cobaltate, barium carbonate, lithium carbonate, silicon carbide, iron oxide, and zirconia. After drying from 40% to 0.5%, the water content drops to 0.5%; the drying process only takes 6 to 15 minutes; and the drying temperature may be adjusted between 80 and 90 °C. Utilizing microwave technology for chemical products not only allows for significant energy savings, but also allows for the simultaneous completion of multiple processes for some products.  Numerous organic compounds are not naturally able to absorb microwaves directly; instead, they can use a "sensitizer" to transport microwave energy to these compounds and trigger chemical reactions. Sensitizers are chemicals that strongly absorb microwaves. Through catalysts or their carriers, microwaves have an inducing role; thus, microwave-induced catalytic processes are those in which catalytic reactions are induced as a result of the consumption of microwave energy.

Use of a microwave has several benefits.

No gases or residues are released during the microwave heating process, making it clean.

The surface and internal surfaces of the object put for treatment are both heated by microwave radiation.

Reduced processing time is a result of the fast heating speed.

The heating procedure of a microwave oven is incredibly flexible.

It doesn't take up much room.

As mending occurs from within the material, best drying effects are obtained.

As opposed to airflow or direct heat transfer based dryers, microwave dryers have lower production costs.