Airknives boost performance of drying systems
March 31st 2009 With the changeover from solvent-based to water-based coatings, in accordance with the VOC Directive, drying times in hot air circulation ovens have increased. One way to ameliorate this situation, according to tests performed by Heraeus Noblelight GmbH, is the introduction of infrared dryers just before the main drying oven. By raising the temperature sufficiently to achieve water evaporation before entry to the drying oven, savings of up to 50% compared to conventional drying ovens can be achieved.
This drying performance can be improved still further by the addition of an ACI AirKnife. It was demonstrated that by exhausting the water-saturated air efficiently from the drying zone drying times are reduced significantly. This is because there is not a build up of moisture laden air for the drying system to overcome.
Characteristics of AirKnives that make them particularly suitable for this drying application are their ability to deliver accurately controlled air flows as regards volume and velocity, air is delivered as a continuous even curtain across the full width of product.
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