FBD or fluid bed dryer is used in pharmaceutical industries for drying the wet mass for tablet, capsules & dry powder suspension manufacturing, where wet mass is suspended in the drying chamber of the fluid bed dryer, and moisture is removed by the stream of hot air which comes in direct contact with the suspended particles.
In this article, you will learn about the merits and demerits of the FBD.
Advantages of FBD
The following are the main advantages of the fluid bed dryer
- Uniform Drying
- Short Drying Period
- Good for Heat-Sensitive Products
- No Hot Spot In Drying Chamber
- Good For Continuous & Batch Drying
- Low Maintenance Cost
- Easy To Clean
Uniform Drying
FBD or fluid bed dryer ensures uniform drying of the product due to the fluidisation principle. The hot air comes in contact with each suspended particle and ensures homogeneous drying of the product.
Short Drying Period
A large batch size can be dried in a much shorter period than other dryers, like tray dryers or oven dryers. Due to a short drying period, the productivity is enhanced.
Good for Heat-Sensitive Products
Excessive heat may result in product degradation while using an oven or dryer, but in fluid bed dryers, different sensors are installed, which monitor different material properties and drying of the product at a lower temperature is ensured for products sensitive to excessive heat.
No Hot Spot In Drying Chamber
The fluidisation process ensures uniform heat distribution in the drying chamber and ensures no hot spot in the drying chamber, ensuring good product quality. In the drying chamber of a fluid bed dryer, the particles are in a state of continuous motion, and hot air passes through these particles, so uniform heat distribution is ensured.
Good For Continuous & Batch Drying
Fluid bed dryers are equally good for batch and continuous drying process. The vertical FBD is suitable for batch drying, whereas the horizontal FBD is suitable for continuous drying.
Low Maintenance Cost
The maintenance cost of the fluid bed dryer is low due to no moving parts in the drying chamber of the fluid bed dryer.
Equipped With Sensors
FBD of fluid bed dryers are equipped with different sensors to ensure online monitoring of different critical process parameters.
Read Sensors detail.
Easy To Clean
Fluid bed dryers are equipped with a Wash in place (WIP) system to ensure an easy cleaning process.
Disadvantages of FBD
The following are the demerits or disadvantages of the fluid bed dryer,
- Production Of More Fine
- Fragile Granules
- More Energy Consumption
- Sticky Materials
- Fluidization Issues
Production Of More Fine
Due to the impact of continuous fluidisation of the product in the drying chamber of the fluid bed dryer, more fine is generated as compared to the tray dryer or oven dryer.
Fragile Granules
When organic solvents are used for kneading the granules dried in fluid bed dryers are fragile as compared to the tray dryers.
More Energy Consumption
The cost of operation may be increased due to high energy consumption during operation.
Sticky Materials
Sticky Materials are difficult to fluidise in the drying chamber & high line loss is observed due to the fact that materials remain stick with product trolley and the walls of the drying chamber.
Fluidization Issues
Due to improper fluidisation, caused by poor air flow or filter/mesh choking, the drying may not be uniform.
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