Thin-layer treatment device

A thin-film treatment apparatus for treating viscous material comprising:

• a process housing oriented at an incline to the horizontal of at most 20° with a heatable and/or coolable housing casing, which surrounds a rotationally symmetrical housing interior extending in an axial direction and forming a material treatment space;
• an inlet nozzle arranged in an inlet zone of the process housing and configured to introduce the material to be treated into the material treatment space;
• an outlet nozzle arranged in an outlet zone of the process housing and configured to discharge the treated material from the material treatment space;
• and
• a drivable rotor shaft arranged in the material treatment space and extending coaxially for producing a material film on the inner surface of the housing casing and for conveying the material in a direction from the inlet zone via a process zone to an outlet zone;
• wherein the rotor shaft comprises a central rotor shaft body and, arranged on the circumference thereof, sweeper elements, of which a radially outermost end is distanced from the inner surface of the housing casing, and wherein the sweeper elements are arranged in a plurality of axially running rows of blades distributed over the circumference of the rotor shaft;
• and
• the rotor shaft comprises at least one lift element arranged on the rotor shaft body, wherein the at least one lift element is configured to produce a lifting force in the direction of the rotor shaft body during the rotation of the rotor shaft, and
• wherein the lift element has a planar incident-flow portion with a leading end in the rotation direction, wherein the leading end is arranged at a greater distance from the inner surface of the housing casing than a region of the incident-flow portion trailing behind the leading end, whereby a gap that narrows in a direction opposite the rotation direction is formed between the incident-flow portion and the inner surface of the housing.